


Cry Wolf

by Alara16



Series: Of Wolves and Hunters [1]
Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Action & Romance, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Animal Death, Bamf!Kuroko, Biting, Blood and Gore, Emotional Manipulation, F/M, Fluff and Angst, I Don't Even Know, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, M/M, Manipulation, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Minor Character Death, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pack Dynamics, Possessive Behavior, Stalking, Suicidal Thoughts, Temporary Character Death, Topping from the Bottom, Violence, Werewolves, hopefully to a good place, where this story is going
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-03
Updated: 2017-10-20
Packaged: 2018-08-19 06:40:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 31,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8194084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alara16/pseuds/Alara16
Summary: It’s been a year, and Kuroko Tetsuya is happy with the life he has. He finally became the teacher he always wanted to be, he has made a new friend with whom he shares a little flat, and there’s the distinct possibility that their platonic relationship might just take a romantic turn.
And then he wakes up one day to find out that his meticulously-built life was a pile of cards, blown away by the wind.
In less than three hours, he finds himself sacked from his job, kicked out of his flat, and dragged back to a life he swore he would never go back to.
But it’s hard to resist a call from the pack's Alpha, much less from the one who bit him, and so Kuroko Tetsuya, formely a member of the powerful Teiko Pack, is forced to return home to his old family and old lovers, all the while battling his emotions while in the middle of a war between Werewolves and Hunters.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Just to warn you guys, I have no idea where I am going with this, or when I will update next.

It was an unusual sight.

The wolf prowled forwards, belly almost brushing the asphalt as he stalked his unaware prey. It was dark in the alley, but even then, despite the dirt and grime that coated the animal, it was still possible to see that his pelt was a pure white that managed to shine through, like shimmering snow in a winter’s night. The lean muscles shifted underneath the fur, the long, graceful limbs moving in tandem as he closed in on his dinner, getting closer, and closer and closer…

He leaped.

There was much noise as the trash cans crashed into the ground, rolling away and undoubtly awakening at least one neighbor, but the wolf didn’t seem to care. All his attention was focused in the trashing feline caught between his paws, and seconds later an audible crack filled the silence that had descended in the alley as his prey’s neck snapped between his strong jaws, the cat attempting one feeble yowl before twitching one last time and succumbing to its fate. The wolf opened his red maws, letting the body hit the ground with a soft thump. He sniffed once, twice, before lowering his head and tearing off a big chunk of flesh, swallowing it whole. Blood stained his nose, running down his chin in thin, red rivulets, as he quickly gorged himself in his catch. He had to be fast. No one knew what dangers could be lurking around at this time of the night.

No sooner had he finished tearing the last scrap of meat from the bone did one of those dangers made itself known.

“Who’s there?!”

The wolf stilled in surprise, muscles tensing, before he sprinted from his hiding place behind one of the fallen trash cans, fleeing from the alley as fast as he could, paying no mind to the startled and slightly terrified shout from the human left behind.

The wolf silently ran down the deserted street, avoiding the lights from streetlamps and shop signs, keeping to the shadows with his head lowered. He would occasionally be forced to stop and hide in order to avoid detection from drunk or wandering men and women. It took almost an hour before he reached his destination.

Yoyogi Park was a famous and beautiful spot that has been used to host many of Tokyo’s larger festivals. The south side was where the event plaza was situated, which the wolf was careful to avoid, instead heading north, where a lush sprawl of trees and greenery awaited him.

Once he was under the cover of tress, the tension in his shoulders slowly bled away, and for the first time that night, he allowed himself to relax. His hunger was, while by no means sated, manageable now, and no curious human was around to gawk and scream at him. For now, he was safe.

He looked up at the sky, the glittering stars winking down at him and the half-moon shinning in the dark, bathing him and all of her Children in her gentle beams. And in that moment the wolf let out a noise, half-cry half-whimper, the loneliness he’s been trying to suppress for so long finally managing to slip from under his guard.

_Where are they? Where’s our pack? Why are we here?_

The wolf suddenly growled, cutting off the beginnings of a howl before it had the chance to fully form, shaking his head. He huffed, trotting away in the direction of an old tree with gnarled roots. Underneath them, half-covered by leaves and twigs, were a set of men’s clothes and a pair of beaten-up sneakers. He dug them out and then stepped away.

Time for the hard part.

There was a loud pop, followed by a crack and choked whimpers, as the wolf’s spinal cord seemed to jump out from his skin. Muscles flexed and pulsed; bones shattered and broke before rearranging themselves in a new, previously impossible order. The burning agony was enough to make anyone scream, but he kept silent, mouth refusing to let anything more than whines leave past his lips. The white fur retreated, leaving behind only smooth, pale skin that glistened with sweat under the moonlight. The creature’s muzzle shrunk, the ears slowly moved down from the top of its shifting head to rest at its side, becoming rounded again. The paws lost their shape, toes lengthening while the claws shortened and the once long, deadly-sharp rows of fangs receded and turned blunted instead. The only thing that didn’t change was the eyes. They remained the same beautiful, clear blue orbs that no normal animal should ever possess.

Soon, where once a wolf stood in all its untamed glory…

Now there was young man shivering on the grass, his white, naked skin doing very little to protect him from the night’s chilly breeze. He groaned, his body trembling in a mix of cold and residual pain, before attempting to stand up. He fell three times before his legs finally remembered how to hold his weight without the help of an extra set of limbs and a tail. The blue-eyed man quickly dressed himself, using a handkerchief found inside his pants pocket to wipe the blood away from his face. His stomach rumbled at the reminder of tonight’s meal, wanting more. Always, always hungering for more than he was willing to give.

“Hush you,” the man grumbled, pocketing the handkerchief. Maybe it could still be salvageable after a good wash or two. “This is all you’re getting this month.”

The Wolf inside him snarled.

After tying his shoelaces, he took off in the direction of the park’s exit. If he was lucky, his housemate wouldn’t notice his absence and he could pretend that he had spent the whole night sleeping in his bed, like the normal, unremarkable human being he so desperately pretended to be.

Kuroko Tetsuya gave one last lingering look at the moon, and then disappeared into the silent streets of Tokyo.


	2. Chapter 2

“Rough night?”

Kuroko almost dropped the coffee mug he had been nursing for the past five minutes at the sound of his housemate’s voice. The hair on his neck stood up on end. Has he really been so out of it that he hadn’t even heard another person enter the room? Just how tired _is_ he? Sleep-deprived or not, Kuroko should have been able to hear him coming.

Then again, Kagami Taiga could be silent on his feet if he wanted. Even if most of the time he didn’t look like he could.

“Yes. Had some trouble sleeping,” the tealette answered absent-mindedly, watching the other man move around their tiny kitchenette like a king doing his routine inspection of his kingdom. Considering that Kagami was the one responsible for keeping them both fed, and fed well, Kuroko certainly didn’t begrudge him his dominion over the kitchen.

The redhead made a sympathetic sound from where he was leaning down to see what they had in the fridge. “Nightmares again, huh?”

His grip tightened around his mug. “Yeah,” he finally breathed out. It came out more miserable than he had intended.

Kagami’s head popped from behind the fridge’s door. His thick eyebrows scrunched up in worry as he looked at the smaller male. “Hey, if you want I can call your job. Tell them you’re not feeling well…”

Kuroko was already shaking his head. “Thank you, Kagami-kun, but that won’t be needed. I’m well enough to go to work,” a smile appeared briefly in his lips. “Besides, I promised Haru-chan that today she would be the one to pick which story I was to read to class.”

Kagami let out a loud guffaw, emerging from the fridge with ham and cheese in one hand and an orange juice jug in another. He shook his head as he went about preparing a sandwich for them. “I will never understand how you can keep those little monsters under control. Bunch of screaming, smelly, hyper-”

“Just because Takeshi-kun and Hayato-kun pulled a prank on you the first time you went there doesn’t mean that all of them are troublemakers.” Kuroko cut him off placidly.

The redhead scoffed, clearly disbelieving, but unwilling to pursue the matter. “I still say it was those damn brats’ fault…

“Of course it was, of course,” the smaller man placated, hiding a smile behind the rim of his mug as his housemate scowled at him and went on a tirade about the devil’s spawns, ungrateful housemates and, Kuroko’s personal favorite, the Chihuahua from Hell.

That _had_ been a memorable day. He still regrets not bringing his camera with him.

He had to stop Kagami though, when the redhead began to badmouth his milkshakes. No one insults the milkshakes.

Drinking his morning coffee while watching Kagami bustle around their kitchen preparing a proper breakfast, the two of them trading barbs just like old friends would… it all felt so domestic. Like this little flat that they could barely afford together was a true home. Like this – _they_ \- was a family.

Kuroko never thought he would have a place to call home again, much less someone to consider family. Not after Teiko.

He almost felt normal again, like this. With Kagami. He felt like Kuroko-sensei, the kindergarten teacher. Kuroko-san, the human. It was during times like this, goofing around with his housemate in their shared apartment, that he could pretend the beast inside him was locked in a cage and the key thrown away. Pretend it never existed in the first place.

He knew, however, that sooner or later, the Wolf would come out. It always did. And all Kuroko could do was ride out the hunger, and hope that it would allow him to maintain this fragile illusion of normalcy for as long as possible.

 

* * *

 

He met Kagami almost a year ago, when he was homeless and hungry and feeling like the worst of monsters. It had been winter, and Tetsuya was a shivering wreck in a back alley, slowly dying of starvation and hypothermia. Kagami, who barreled inside the alley to escape from an angry dog, had quite literally tripped over him. And then became promptly horrified at his sorry state.

The rest of the week had been a blur, a terrible fever taking control of his body, one not even his naturally strong immune system could ward off. All he remembered were Kagami’s arms carrying him to a bed and to the bathroom, his big hands holding him down when he trashed awake from a nightmare, wiping his sweaty forehead clean with a blessedly cool rag, trying to feed him soup and forcing medicine down his throat.

After a few days of that, Tetsuya finally became lucid again. He tried to thank the red-haired man that had saved him, promising to one day pay him back, all the while making his way to the door. Kagami had scoffed at him, led him away from his apartment’s door, and told him in no uncertain terms that he was still recuperating and to better get back in the bed or else Kagami would tie him down on it.

Days became weeks that became months, and soon a year had already passed and Kuroko was still here, despite having found a job and having enough money to move out. Still here, living with firefighter Kagami Taiga, his savior and best friend and crush.

Taiga was a truly handsome man. Tall and muscular but not overly so, with flaming two-toned red hair and eyes that burned with determination and the joy of life. His scent, too, was strangely alluring. The smell of burning wood would often follow him around, faint but always there. It reminded Kuroko of long nights sitting around a big bonfire, eating marshmallows and telling ghost stories among friends. Kagami was warm like a fire too, a light blazing through the night, inspiring others to follow behind him. Inviting, that was what Kagami was. He would accept anyone that came to his doorstep searching for help. To be honest, that scared Kuroko. He knew, after all, that people could lie just as easily as breath, and what if someday Kagami let a serial killer inside just because it was raining and they didn’t have an umbrella? His kindness could be the death of him one day.

But it was that kindness that Kuroko so cherished, and would do anything to protect. Just like Kagami protected Kuroko in the days when all the young werewolf wanted to do was lie down in the cold and die. Taiga never pried either, never asked him about his past or what horrible things happened to him that led Kuroko to that alley. He respected his privacy, and trusted him enough to wait. Wait for Kuroko to tell him things, whenever he felt comfortable in doing so.

Eventually, Kuroko did tell. Bits and pieces of an edited story, something about running away from pushy relatives that wanted to dictate his life and the death of a dear friend that sent him over the edge. And Kagami accepted that too, all his tears and emotional baggage that Kuroko carried around like chains.

It would have been surprising for him _not_ to fall in love with Kagami Taiga.

He had tried to resist in the beginning. Tried to put some distance between them, tried to remind himself what happened the last time he had fallen head over heels for a man who was much like Kagami.

It didn’t work.

It also didn’t help that Kuroko was certain Kagami stared at his ass every time he bend over to pick something from the floor (usually dropped on purpose) with a distinctly hungry expression that made even his Wolf –that more often than not would simply ignore the human male- sit up at attention, ears perked in interest.

And so here they were, the hopelessly-in-love werewolf playing at being human and the ferocious, compassionate human man, living together in a tiny flat and tiptoeing around their feelings for each other for the better part of a year. The UST was reaching dangerously high levels. Something, _someone_ , would have to give, and soon. Of that Kuroko was certain.

He just hoped that when that happened, he would have enough control of himself not to devour Kagami the way his Wolf wanted him to.

 

* * *

 

The kindergarten Kuroko worked at was just a bus station away from his and Kagami’s shared apartment. It was small building cramped between taller edifices, with less than two hundred children in it. The pay was just enough to cover his part of the rent, and his classroom’s air-conditioner broke more often than not.

And Kuroko wouldn’t change a thing.

He adored his job, loved working with children. As long as he could keep teaching and interacting with his kids, nothing else mattered. Kuroko lived for the beaming smiles that would light up their faces every time he entertained them with a story of his own making, or one of his ‘disappearing acts’.

Children were innocent, Kuroko would often think. And that innocence, he felt, deserved to be protected for as long as possible.

There was a time when Kuroko dreamed of children of his own. Little boys and girls with the sky in their heads, the sun reflecting in their eyes as they ran across the field of their ancestral home. Big smiles showing tiny, adorable fangs that would length into sharp canines and _tear into a human’s throat-_

The dream turned into a nightmare, and Kuroko buried it away with his past.

Working as a kindergarten teacher helped him cope. It sated a deep part of his soul, made the yearning for pups of his own lessen, if only a bit.

But of course, working as a kindergarten teacher was also an obvious choice of profession to anyone who knew him, so he shouldn’t have been surprised that he was found so quickly.

He had been inside the teachers’ room during recess, gulping down a cold glass of water when there was knock on the door.

“Kuroko-sensei?” the school’s secretary called, having to look around the room twice before she finally spotted him standing near the window. “There is a man waiting for you in the parking lot behind the building. He says it is an urgent matter.”

Kuroko raised an eyebrow. “Did he say who he was? Or what this urgent matter is about?”

The woman shrugged helplessly. “He wouldn’t give me his name, but he told me to tell you that it’s about something called… Oh, what was it he said?... Ah… Huh, something called Teiko?”

The glass shattered in Kuroko’s grip, water splattering on his front and shards digging mercilessly into his skin. The scent of blood filled his nose, as familiar as it was sickening. His stomach rolled, and for a second, Kuroko thought he would be sick. 

The only sound he could hear was his heart attempting to jump out of his chest in its mad race.

The secretary gasped in horror, rushing towards him with a worried expression and Kuroko regained enough of his mental faculties to remember that letting her see his skin knit itself back together wouldn’t be the greatest idea.

“I’m okay, Mei-san. Please, could you warn the teacher covering for me that something’s come up? It seems that… family complications have arisen. I fear I won’t be able to return today.”

Mei gaped at him, her eyes seemingly torn between looking at his blank face or at the bleeding hand that was now clutched protectively to his chest, and probably staining the old blue sweater he was wearing too.

“I- I…” she stammered out, hands flapping about uselessly.

He nodded at her. “Thank you very much for your understanding, Mei-san. Good day to you.”

He bypassed her silently, and like a ghost, drifted down the hallway and into the exit that led to the parking lot.

Inside the cage, his Wolf prowled in anticipation.

 

* * *

 

When he arrived, there was no one there waiting for him. For a wild, fleeting moment, Kuroko allowed himself to hope.

Then the wind changed directions, and a familiar scent was carried towards him. His eyes widened dramatically, and for a second, he loses control.

The Wolf surges at the forefront of his mind, barking and howling with joy, tail wagging madly. _Pack,_ it hollers jubilantly, more alive than it has been for the last twelve months. _Pack, pack, pack!_

The aromas of a far-away forest assault his senses, so intense he has to close his eyes. The crisp smell of the woods after it rains. Morning dew glistening in the flowers’ petals like tiny crystals. The richness of the brown and green earth, steady under his paws as he runs together with the pack.

The subtly sweet smell of red bean soup.

_Shintarou!_ his Wolf cries, and Kuroko shoves It back down, forces the beast back into its cage and slams it shut. He has to look down at himself to make sure he’s still standing, and not bucking over under his own weight. Still human, and not monster.

It’s been sometime indeed, since he had last seen Midorima Shintarou.

“Kuroko.”

His voice hadn’t changed at all. Still the same lofty tone he used with everyone, as if he was a prince constantly looking down on them, the poor peasants. Once, Kuroko had found it incredibly annoying to talk to the green-haired male. Then later, he had taken comfort in it, to the point of finding it endearing. Now, his voice sounded like nails scrapping against a chalkboard. Almost against his will, Kuroko opened his eyes and looked up, already expecting what he would see.

Midorima hadn’t changed much in the year they’ve been apart. He had left his fringe grow to cover his forehead, but his hair was still the same green that matched his eyes, covered behind black-framed glasses that did nothing to stop drawing attention to the vibrant irises. The smart suit with the dark green tie complimented him well and, much to Kuroko’s disgruntlement, he was still taller than him.

But there were changes, and no matter how much Kuroko tried not to, he _couldn’t_ ignore them.

It wasn’t in his Omega nature.

Stress lines marked Midorima’s face, more than there ever was, and Kuroko could see the bitter twist to his mouth, the tenseness in his broad shoulders. The tealette had to remind himself that the man’s condition was no longer his problem. Midorima –just like any of the others- wasn’t his concern any longer. He shouldn’t worry over his health, wonder if he had slept or eaten anything in the last few days.

He _wouldn’t_ , no matter how much the Wolf whined inside the cage, wanting to reach out to comfort his (ex) pack mate.

“Midorima-san,” he replied politely, trying not to wince at the pain radiating from his cut palm. He had briefly forgotten it, in his daze to get here, to confirm that his nightmare had stepped out of his dreams and become reality.

All in all, it _could_ have been worse. It was just Midorima. It could have been Aomine, or, god forbid, _Kise._

Akashi would never leave their lands, and neither would Murasakibara leave Akashi, so those two were out.

He supposed he had won the lottery with Midorima.

Said man was now sending a reproachful glare at his bloody hand.

“An accident,” Kuroko answered the unspoken question, resisting the urge to hide his hand from sight like a guilty kid. He was twenty-six years old. He shouldn’t be feeling like a child about to receive a scolding from his parent.

Midorima sniffed, “A careless accident.” Silently, he held out his tapped hand –tapped, he still did that even after everything?- and without thinking, Kuroko placed his injured hand on his.

As the green-haired male worked in picking out the glass shards from his palm, Kuroko couldn’t stop himself from staring at the bandages wrapped around Midorima’s left hand. Nostalgia hits him hard and fast, and before long he remembers the day Shintarou first had his left hand wrapped in bandages.

It had been winter season, and the woods had already been covered by a blanket of fluffy-white snow. In a rare occurrence, he and Shintarou were left alone in the house, the others out in missions or keeping up their human pretenses to fool the neighbors. They had felt the itch to change and so they decided to go on a run and stretch their legs in their wolf forms. In their race, Shintarou was caught in a wolf trap left by human hunters who had sneaked in the property without their knowledge, his paw crushed under the force of the metal bite. Tetsuya had to change back and kneel naked on the freezing snow, trembling so much he ended up cutting his fingers into bloody ribbons in his efforts to free his pack mate.

To this day he didn’t know how exactly he did it, but eventually, Tetsuya managed to free Shintarou, and then, fighting against the urge to change into warm fur, hoisted him up with his skinny arms, carrying the wounded wolf to a near-by cave their pack sometimes used as a den when they spent more than a day as wolves. Still human and shaking enough to make his bones rattle beneath his skin, he had found the emergency supplies like blankets, food and –most important- the first-aid kit stashed away. He had carefully bandaged Shintarou’s maimed left paw to the best of his ability, before collapsing mid-way through his transformation into a wolf.

He had woken up three days later to find himself the focus of his whole pack’s worry disguised as anger. Apparently, he had almost died when he fainted halfway through his change. Tetsuya hadn’t been allowed to leave the bed for a week after that, and during the whole week Shintarou would sleep with him, alternating between fussing over him and berating him for his foolishness.

“Have you ever even bandaged someone’s wound before?!” he had asked during their week in the infirmary, pointing at the shoddy work Tetsuya had done on his hand.

“No,” Testsuya had replied blankly and then spent the rest of the week learning from Shintarou how to properly dress an injury. Even after his confinement in the sickbay ended, Shintarou would still come up to him every day with a row of white bandages and he would practice changing the other werewolf’s bindings while they discussed about other healing methods. It didn’t seem to matter that Shintarou’s wound had already long healed. It became a sort of bonding session for them, and it stirred something inside Kuroko to see that even after a year apart, Midorima still seemed to change the tapping around his hand daily.

He was brought back to the present when the warmth of Midorima’s hand vanished. He had to bite back a whine of disappointment.

“Be more careful next time, nanodayo,” Midorima said, fixing his glasses. Kuroko could the way his ears reddened ever so slightly. “Not that I care or anything…”

Ah, Midorima. Eternally a tsundere. What a strangely comforting thought.

Kuroko clears his throat. Those were dangerous thoughts. “What are you doing here Midorima-san?”

“You used to call me with another honorific,” he pointed out.

The teacher looked at him steadily. “Things change.”

Midorima sneered, looking at Kuroko’s shabby appearance with obvious disdain. “I can see that clearly. Do you even have enough money to pay the bus?”

As a matter of fact, he didn’t. Not that he would admit that aloud.

“What does it matter to you? Or have you forgotten that I am no longer part of your pack?” It is a reminder to him as much as it is to Midorima. He needs to leave as soon as possible. Being near the other werewolf brings up all kinds of memories that are best left behind.

It was still a low blow, but Kuroko was tired of standing here in the middle of the parking lot, facing a piece of the past he tried so hard to bury.

Green eyes shone brightly for a moment, a flash of yellow –of animal _beast_ **monster** \- visible for just a second.

Midorima’s voice changed, becoming deeper and rougher, a low growl to his words that no human could ever hope to imitate. His scent sharpened, the heady forest smell becoming oppressive. He seemed to grow bigger before Kuroko’s eyes and everything about him screamed _Alpha_.

“We will _always_ be pack. You can’t change that, Tetsuya, just like you can’t change what you are, no matter how much you wish you could. And now you can’t keep running from the truth either.”

Ice crept inside his veins, freezing his limbs and rooting him to his spot. When angry, Midorima truly was a terrifying sight to behold. Kuroko blinked, breath coming out faster as his heartbeat quickened. Still, he didn’t back down. The misconception of Omegas being just submissive pushovers was just that; a gross misconception.

“I won’t go back. You can’t make me. I won’t.” Leave his job, his kids, his flat? Leave _Kagami_ , the first real friend he had since-

“You don’t have a choice. Akashi ordered it.”

And Akashi is absolute, isn’t he?

He couldn’t. He **wouldn’t**.

“Forgive me, Shintarou.”

The use of his first name surprised Midorima just like Kuroko knew it would. He took the split second of advantage and decked him right across the face, sending his glasses soaring across the air before sliding under one of the cars parked nearby. In wolf form, Midorima might have perfect eyesight, but as a man without his glasses, he was as blind as a bat.

“Damn it, Kuroko! Don’t be difficult!” he shouted, quickly recuperating from the attack and jumping into the blurred form of the smaller man, only to crash into another car as Kuroko slipped away from his hands and ran.

He didn’t look back.

 

* * *

 

“It’s me. Akashi was right. He chose to be difficult.”

“ _Ehh~, that doesn’t surprise me. It’s_ him _, after all.”_

Midorima tsked in annoyance, gripping the cellphone harder. “I need you. Where are you?”

_“I just arrived in Tokyo. Do you want to meet up, or for me to go directly to his apartment?”_

“We don’t have time to lose. Go to his apartment. I will meet you there.”

The voice in the other line was silent for a minute. _“And then we will go home, right? All of us?”_

The grip he had on the phone relaxed a little. A soft look appeared briefly in Midorima’s face before vanishing just as quickly. “Yes. After that, all of us will go home.”

_“… Is he still mad?”_

He snorted, hand lightly brushing what he knew to be an already developing bruise on his cheek. “Yes, I think it’s safe to say he’s still mad.”

_“What are we going to do?”_

“Man proposes, God disposes. We will do what we’ve always done. Stay together as a pack and prepare to weather the storm. Listen, I got to go. I will meet you at Kuroko’s apartment. Goodbye.”

A sigh came from the other side of the call.

_“I will see you soon, Midorimacchi.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still no idea where this is going. But I thank all of you who have read this story!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kise makes his appearance and Kagami gives Kuroko something worth fighting for.

“I will be seeing you soon, Midorimacchi.”

The phone clicked shut, ending the call. Cool, amber eyes watched dispassionately the people walking around him in the train station.

It had been years since the last time Kise Ryouta stepped foot into Tokyo. The last time he came here was also because of a mission. The Alpha had sent him and Aominecchi to track down and kill a loner, having heard rumors about the werewolf trying to create an illicit pack. They had spent two weeks combing the streets only to find false leads and dead ends. The two were called back after a month and the mission was labeled a failure. Their first one.

This mission, Kise vowed, wouldn’t end in failure.

 

* * *

 

The noxious smells of city life were doing havoc on Kise’s poor, sensitive nose. The streets were crowded, humans bustling around like ants, all of them too busy in their own little world to notice the dangerous predator stalking in their midst.

 _Humans are so blind,_ Kise thought to himself, his Wolf agreeing with a soft growl.

How could Kurokocchi stand living among the filth?

Suppressing a shiver of disgust when a human woman accidentally brushed against his arm, Kise hurried down the street. This close, he should be able to smell-

Ah.

There he is.

Many werewolves who knew Kuroko Tetsuya believed him to be an anomaly, a wolf without scent. But Kise knew the truth. Kurokocchi did have an scent. It was just so subtle it could escape even a wolf’s sense of smell.

Besides, it wouldn’t have mattered if Tetsuya really didn’t have a scent. Ryouta would still be able to find him.

Ryouta would always find his Tetsuya.

Amber eyes flashed yellow, and Kise breathed in deeply through his nose before releasing it through his mouth, having to duck into an alleyway to collect himself. _Not yet,_ he told his Wolf that was pacing anxiously inside him, whining to get out and follow that (enthralling _delicious_ **perfect** ) trail. _Not yet. Patience._

The wolf growled one last time, obviously grumpy, before backing away from the surface. It knew patience could be rewarding.

It wasn’t like it would have to wait much anyway; Kise wasn’t one to deprive himself from the things he wanted for very long.

In that moment, there was nothing that he wanted more than to see Kuroko Tetsuya again.

He wondered if the omega had changed. A year had gone by, who knew what might have happened? His hair could be longer or have been cut short. Maybe it was dyed. He could have grown taller, or gotten a tattoo and piercings, no matter how unlikely it was to imagine Kurokocchi getting any of those things. Hell, he might have gotten hurt in a fight with other wolves, there could be new scars marring his body. Perhaps he had grown bitter, or angrier.

Could he be feeling lonely, like Kise has been?

It was when he reached the second floor where Kurokocchi resided that he realized; there was another smell entwined with Kuroko’s.

Burning wood. Cooked meat. Mixed with a little spice Kise had no name for because it belonged exclusively to this… man.

Human. Male. Somewhere between twenty-five and thirty years old. Strong, healthy and virile. Had he been a werewolf, there was no doubt he would be an alpha. And his smell was so tangled with Tetsuya’s it almost completely overpowered his. It was almost like the man was consciously using his personal scent to mask -to **_mark_** \- Kuroko.

 _Competition,_ his Wolf snarled, leaping forward to the forefront of his mind, jaws snapping at the empty air. _Wants to take what’s **ours**._

Kise could feel the fangs lengthen in his mouth, the claws growing and sharpening at an abnormally fast pace. What was the meaning of this? Who was that and what _the fuck_ was he doing with Kuroko?

Control. Must calm down. Think rationally. Don’t lose your fucking head now Kise.

The Wolf’s snarls grew louder to the point Ryouta could hear nothing else.

 _Stop,_ he shouts at it. _Not yet. Now’s not the right time. Must wait. Patience._

It didn’t want to wait. It had waited long enough. But Kise was far from the same unruly pup he had once been, and he forced the wolf down.

He told it again: _Wait. Attack now and the prey escapes. **He** escapes. _

The wolf whined at that, a pitiful noise that almost sounded like a sob. Then it quieted, become docile again and retreating. It crouched low, yellow eyes wide and watching. Waiting.

If this dirty human touched Tetsuya… The blond werewolf smiled beatifically.

Ryouta would feast tonight.

He knocked on the door.

 

* * *

 

Kuroko ran inside his apartment, slamming the door shut behind him. He didn’t bother locking it. Not like a lock would ever stop a determined werewolf.

His less-than-subtle arrival caught Kagami’s attention. The redhead was busy pressing the phone to his ear and arguing loudly with the person on the other side, while waving a pieceof paper in the air.

Kuroko paused momentarily in his panic to look better at the paper. Was that… an eviction notice?

“But I don’t understand! We’ve always paid the rent, never disturbed any of the neighbors or vomited in the lobby like the guy from 202! _Why_ are you kicking us out?!” Kagami shouted, growing red in the face.

With his enhanced hearing, Kuroko picked up the answer coming from, he realized, their landlord.

_“Look, what’s done is done. Something came up, and you guys just can’t stay in there anymore. It’s nothing personal, it’s just business. You have until I come back from lunch to get out. If you refuse, I will have to call the authorities.”_

“What?! Now, wait just a moment there, you-...! He hung up.” Kagami said incredulous. “He hung up on me.”

Kuroko’s eyes narrowed. Meeting Midorima and receiving an eviction order in the same day? It was too much of a coincidence.

“Did the landlord mention any name?”

Kagami, still looking shell-shocked, nodded. “Some guy called Midorin? What kind of name is Midorin?”

Kuroko didn’t bother telling Kagami that it wasn’t a name, so much as an alias –or, more specifically, an old nickname- and instead began packing.

At the sight of his housemate packing away his things, Kagami’s eyes widened in panic. He jumped from where he had sat on the couch.

“H-hey! What are you doing?”

“Kagami-kun, we need to leave.”

The redhead shook his head stubbornly. “No way. We should stay right here and wait for the idiot landlord to call the police. When we explain, they will see who’s in the right,” he said with conviction.

Kuroko paused in packing, turning to look at Kagami.

“Sometimes Kagami-kun is very stupid.”

He blanched. “Oi! Don’t say things like that! This is our home!” he squared his shoulders, glaring down at the petite bluenette. “This is our home Kuroko, and I refuse to leave this place just like that. What about all the work in put in decorating this place the way we both liked? What about all the memories we have that began in here?” red eyes stared him down, willing him to understand. “We worked too hard for this to simply give up now.”

And Kuroko… understood.

Despite all the bad neighbors and odd noises in the night, despite the shower that more often than not lacked hot water and the leak that would always fall from the ceiling of the sitting room every time it rained. Despite the suspicious dark stains that could be found all over the place and the lights that would give out during the most inconvenient time…

This was their home, no matter how tiny and humble it was. It was the home he shared with Kagami, someone he had come to care about deeply. Some of the happiest memories he had of the past year happened there.

Midorima was right after all. It was time to stop running. Stop running, and start fighting back.

Looking at the determination shining brightly in the ruby-red eyes of his precious human friend, Kuroko believed, truly believed, that he could do it. That _together_ , he and Kagami could do _anything_.

And then there was the sound of knocking on their door.

A chill runs down Kuroko’s spine and he knew then that his time had finally run out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter, I know. The next one will probably be longer. Please review!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kise and Kuroko reunite after a year apart, but the circumstances couldn't be worse. And Kagami learns the consequences of touching what doesn't belong to him.

Kuroko and Kagami traded looks before glancing at the door again.

"It's too soon. The guy can't be back from his lunch yet," the redhead muttered, keeping a wary eye on the entrance.

"I don't think that is our landlord, Kagami-kun," Kuroko tells him, eyes fixed on the door. He tries to keep the fear out of his voice but was probably unsuccessful if the way Kagami's eyes were narrowed at him.

"You're scared," the human said in realization. "You arrived here looking like the hounds of hell were nipping at your heels when you should still be at work. What happened? Was someone following you?" his eyes narrowed further, glaring at the person behind the door.

Kuroko didn't dare look at his housemate's face, too nervous and afraid to show it. "Someone came to my job today." he begins carefully. "Someone I haven't seen in a long time."

The knock came back, harder this time. It sounded as ominous as it did impatient.

Before Kagami could get the idea of answering it himself, Kuroko moved. He wouldn't let his friend get any closer to the danger lurking outside their apartment, waiting to be invited in.

 _He's even knocking,_ a little voice giggled inside his head, sounding slightly hysterical.  _How considerate. So polite._

For once, his Wolf was silent. It paced around in the cage, white fur brushing against the bars, nose cautiously sniffing the air. Something like hope shone in its eyes.

Kuroko knew, even before opening the door, who would be behind it. He knew, but still prayed to be wrong.

His prayers were doomed to go unheard. After all, the smell of sunflowers was already tickling his nose.

Kise Ryouta was stunningly perfect. There were simply no other words to describe him. _Pretty_  was too plain, _beautiful_  not nearly enough. The silky, blond hair that brushed the nape of his neck; the flawless, sun-kissed skin and tall, lightly toned body. Wide eyes the color of molten gold framed by long, dark eyelashes. Full, kissable pink lips, turned into a gentle smile as he looked down at Kuroko.

But worse than Kise's good-looks, worse than his adoring smile and tender eyes, even his heart-achingly-familiar scent, was the fact that even after all the time and space separating them, Tetsuya could still _feel_ Ryouta.

His Wolf barked in utter delight, pressing himself against the bars, ears laid back and all but whining for attention, like a puppy begging to be petted.  _Ryouta, Ryouta, Ryouta!_

He couldn't stop his reaction anymore than he could stop his own heart from beating; it was instinctive. When all is said and done, every bitten Werewolf was intrinsically linked to their makers.

"Ryouta," Kuroko started, only to stop and curse himself at the slip-up.

The smile in his alpha's face widened "Missed me, Tetsuya?"

 

* * *

 

Kagami Taiga was confused, and when no explanations came to clear up said confusion, he got annoyed.

The day started so well too. He had woken up to his favorite sight in the mornings: a nearly comatose Kuroko sipping at the coffee in his mug, so out of it that he wouldn't notice if Kagami spent more time than appropriate ogling his housemate. Kagami maintained that the fault laid in the shorter man's hair. It was probably the most ridiculous bed hair in all of history.

His amusement was clouded by the realization that Kuroko had yet another one of his nightmares. When they had met for the first time, those dreams were a nightly visitor and Kagami lost count how often he would have to shake the other man awake. After six months though they had mostly stopped, only resurfacing once every few weeks, and never again were they bad enough to warrant screaming. Just recently, Kagami was thinking they had vanished completely. Maybe he should offer to share the bed again? It had helped in the beginning, and if he was honest with himself, Kagami didn't mind the thought of sleeping next to Kuroko at all. And that was said in the most innocent way possible.

In all honesty though, it wasn't lust that Kagami felt. Well, okay, not _only_  lust. He really cared about Kuroko,

And it hurt, to know that even after a year of friendship, there were things in Kuroko's past that he still didn't trust Taiga with. He only knew the bare bones of the life Kuroko led before their meeting in that frozen alley, and for a time it was enough.

It stopped being enough when Kagami woke up one day to see daylight playing on the hilariously-messy mop of blue hair resting on his chest and had the sudden thought:  _I love this guy._

_Oh._

_I love him. I love Kuroko Tetsuya._

Kagami was a man of action. What he wanted, he pursued and wouldn't stop until he got it. But there were shadows in Kuroko's eyes, holes in his heart that Kagami was terrified of widening. He had spent so much time picking up the pieces and trying to glue them together. What would he do if he accidentally broke him? Would Kuroko recuperate a second time? Could he?

So he decided the best approach plan was to wait. Wait until the shadows lessened, wait until the nightmares were forgotten.

He would wait, Kagami decided in that morning of waking up and realizing he was in love with his housemate, for as long as it took.

He would wait, because Kuroko Tetsuya was worth it.

The problem now was that maybe he had waited too long.

Because the handsome guy standing on their porch didn't look at Kuroko the way a relative or a friend -even a close one- would. No, this 'Ryouta' looked at Kuroko like the kindergarten teacher hung the sun and the moon in his hands, like he was the very air he breathed. Kagami recognized the look. He had spent enough time in front of a mirror to do so.

'Ryouta' looked at Kuroko like a man hopelessly, desperately in love.

And Kuroko...

Kagami couldn't interpret the look on the man's face, but he didn't need to. The clenched fists and white knuckles were enough of clue. Whoever this 'Ryouta' was, he was clearly not wanted here. Kagami would be overjoyed to be the one kicking him out.

"Who are you and what are you doing in our apartment?" he asks the blond rudely. He hoped it would scare him and drive him off.

The stranger barely spared him a glance. It was clear to everyone in the room just how insignificant blondie deemed the redhead.

"Kise-san, please answer Kagami-kun's question. This place is as much his as it's mine, and he has a right to know who enters here and who doesn't." Kuroko's monotone voice spoke up. Kagami could have kissed him. He  _wanted_ to.

The blond sighed, looking at the shorter man bemusedly. "Oh well, if Kurokocchi insists."

'Kurokocchi'? ' _Kurokocchi'?_ Who  _was_ that guy?!

The stranger finally faced him properly, eyeing him up and down in barely-veiled dislike. The feeling was reciprocated, especially when blondie wrapped a possessive arm around Kuroko's waist to pull him close.

"My name's Kise Ryouta," he says charmingly enough, but there was a cold glint in his eyes that made Kagami reconsider his chances if a fight were to break out. "And I'm Kurokocchi's lover."

 

* * *

 

It was like a punch to the gut. "What?!" he croaked, feeling the sudden need to sit down.

Kuroko let out a growl (since when did Kuroko growl?) that actually sounded threatening (since when did _Kuroko_ sound _threatening_?!) and delivered a painful jab to Kise's stomach with his bony elbow. Kise made a pained face, but didn't let go. If anything, he just brought Kuroko closer.

"He means  _ex-_ lovers. We haven't been together for more than a year now," Kuroko says, still fighting to get out of Kise's hold. The sight makes Kagami burn with anger. Who the hell was Kise to manhandle his partner when he clearly didn't want to?

"Don't say such mean things, Kurokocchi!" Kise whined, his voice grating on Kagami's ears. "We were always so very close!"

Was it his imagination, or did Kuroko looked pained at that?

He admits that what he did next was stupid. But hey, he never thought of himself as a particularly smart guy. That was Kagami's problem sometimes; he let his anger overrule his rationals thoughts.

Ignoring Kuroko's wide eyes and shaking head, Kagami advanced, taking the bluenette's hand and getting on Kise's face. "Let go of him, you bastard."

In an instant, Kagami finds himself pressed up against a wall, a hand closing against his throat and  _Jesus fuck_ the son of a bitch was fast.

"You don't touch him," the words were snarled quietly in his ears. "Do you understand? He doesn't belong to you. You don't have the _right_."

He made it sound like Kuroko was some object that could be claimed and owned. It just pissed Kagami off more. "And you do?" he manages to wheeze out.

With murder all over his face -and did his eyes flashed yellow for a second there?- Kise was about to speak again only to suddenly be wrenched away from Kagami. His throat finally free from the pressure, Kagami stepped away, coughing.

Kuroko was standing between him and Kise, looking more wild and on edge than Kagami had ever seen him. If anyone were to look at him now they would wonder how was it possible that Kuroko could escape so many people's notice, looking like that.

"State your business, Kise-san. And then leave."

Kuroko didn't shout or even used a higher than normal volume of voice. But his words still managed to capture all of the room's occupants' attention. Slowly, Kise looked up from where he had fallen on the floor when Kuroko pulled him away, strands of his yellow hair falling to partially cover his eyes.

"You know why I'm here, Kurokocchi. You've spoken to Midorimacchi, haven't you?"

"We didn't speak much," his housemate says stiffly, and Kagami feels so lost right now. Who the hell was 'Midorimacchi'?

Kise chuckles, a fond look all over his face. "No, I didn't think you did when I received a call from him earlier. He sounded very cross with you, Kurokocchi. You shouldn't have run from him," he chides him gently.

Then his face grows more serious and it's like Kagami is staring at a totally different person. Gone was the cheery look from Kise's features; now it looked like his face had been carved out of granite. If an angry Kise was scary, a serious Kise was terrifying.

"You must go back Tetsuya. We need you. Our P-" he hesitates, the blond's eyes sliding over to Kagami. "... Family needs you."

Kagami sees the way Kuroko's back tenses, how his shoulders hunch together and he goes from an offensive pose to a defensive one.

"You don't. None of you need me. Whatever the problem is, I'm sure it can be handled without my presence."

"You underestimate your own importance, Kurokocchi."

"No, Kise-san, I don't. Besides, even if I wanted to, I wouldn't be able to just drop everything and rush back to Kyoto with you. I have a life here. I have a home, friends and a job."

Kise looks at their home, and his lips curl in disgust at their less than grand little flat. "I'm pretty sure you don't, actually. An apartment _and_ a job, I mean."

Kuroko stills. His voice, when he speaks next, is so low Kagami has to strain his ears to hear him.

"The apartment I'm not surprised. But what do you mean when you say I have no job?"

Chills run down Kagami's spine at the tone on his friend's voice. He doesn't think he has ever heard Kuroko sound so angry before.

Kise must have excellent hearing, because he answers at once. "No one notified you? It seems that the kindergarten you work at has had a cut on funds. They were barely scrapping by to begin with, but now they really are weeks away from closing their doors forever. Unless... they decide to fire some of their teachers to save up money. And since you were really overqualified for the job anyway, you were one of the obvious choices to dismiss. I can only presume that their reasoning was something along the lines of 'he can probably find another job easily'. But of course, you don't need to believe me. Check by yourself. I'm sure they must have sent a message to your email, or gave you a call."

That's exactly what Kuroko does. He checks his phone and finds he has two missed calls from a number he recognizes as his boss'. But that could mean anything. He checks his email next. Whatever he sees there makes the blank mask he wears crack around the edges,

There's something very much like devastation on Kuroko's face.

Right then and there, Kagami decides he hates Kise Ryouta. He absolutely loathes him.

He knows how much the kids mean to Kuroko; he has seen the man's face when he is surrounded by children, seen the way he looks at them as if they are his own. And yeah, Kagami still thinks they are all snot-nosed brats who should learn to respect their elders, but it's so clear that Kuroko's love is returned a hundredfold, that he can't dislike the midgets. His housemate is very lovable after all.

But now Kuroko looks as if his world has been destroyed and after their first month together Kagami thought he would never be forced to see this face again.

"You bastard, what have you done?!" he is ready to punch the blond in the face and to hell with the consequences.  It doesn't matter that this is a fight he will probably lose. Kagami can't forgive anyone that would put that look on Kuroko's face.

"Don't, Kagami-kun," the shorter man holds out a hand to derail him in his tracks. There's something frighteningly frail in Kuroko's voice. "Kise-kun didn't do this. He doesn't have the influence to such."

Kise, apparently tired of their talk, decides to go in for the kill then.

"Shuuzou is dead."

And Kagami watches his best friend, the possible love of his life, crumble like a pile of cards. He can't help but think he has just lost Kuroko to something he will never be able to rescue him from.

 

* * *

 

_"Shuuzou is dead."_

Kuroko was always fond of Nijimura Shuuzou, considering the other omega a close friend. The older werewolf had been a calming presence on their pack, able to even get Akashi to listen to him during the redhead's most unreasonable moments. He had helped Kuroko cope with his new life in a way that not even Akashi, the next-in-line to be the pack's alpha, or Kise, the one who bit him, were able to. The latter two were born werewolves; they didn't know what it was like to live without the Wolf inside them, without the pain of the change at least once a month. They didn't know life without the Hunger for flesh that gnawed at their bellies and was never fully sated.

But Nijimura-san had known. He had understood. Shuuzou had been human too, once upon a time.

Out of everyone in the Teiko Pack, Nijimura-san was the only one who had understood and supported his need to leave, to put as much distance between himself and the rest. In all probability, it was only because of that that Tetsuya was able to leave at all. He was also the only one Kuroko remained in semi-regular contact with over the past year.

Kuroko hadn't heard anything from Nijimura-san for nearly three months now.

 _How didn't I notice something was_ _wrong?_

There were many questions in his head. He wants to ask when that happened, where, how and why. He wants to ask _who_.

Kuroko wasn't stupid. Both Midorima and Kise wouldn't come all the way from Kyoto to Tokyo and track him down just to tell him about a pack mate's natural death. Whatever had happened to Nijimura-san, it had been foul play. Someone had murdered a Teiko wolf, which automatically put all members in danger.

But Kuroko wasn't a part of Teiko anymore.

Midorima's face floated in front of his mind's eye for a moment, his growled words coming back like a whispered curse.

_“We will **always** be pack."_

The indecision is tearing him apart inside, and Kise, damn him, knows it.

To his credit though, the alpha doesn't smile like the cat that got the canary. The comparison wouldn't be correct anyway. Kise wasn't a cat.

"You should at least come to the funeral. Nijimura-san would have liked you to be there when we send him off."

After that, there's no more needed to be said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: In the way to a funeral, Kuroko reminisces about the days when he used to be human, and ends up face-to-face with the man who was the beginning of everything. Meanwhile, Kise remembers his own memories of the past year, and is determined not to suffer through them again.
> 
> Chapter 5 might take a while. Just a warning for those hoping for a fast update. Please don't forget to review!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the way to a funeral, Kuroko reminisces about the days when he used to be human, and ends up face-to-face with the man who was the beginning of everything. Meanwhile, Kise looks back on his own miserable memories of the past year, and is determined not to suffer through them again.

"You have five minutes," Midorima hisses at him under his breath, snatching away Kuroko's only bag that carried most of his meager belongings, (including some clothes, his toothbrush, and a book) with him as the greenette made his way to, presumably, distract Kise, who was inside one of the candy shops stocking up in snacks for the train ride ahead of them.

The omega watched him go fondly. Even after he punched him, Midorima would still give him this. He now regretted hurting the other werewolf. Not that he hadn't deserved it, or that he wouldn't do it again after being provoked or given the chance, but if he could go back in time, Kuroko would probably aim for something other than his face. Hit him in the stomach maybe, so that no one would see the glaringly purple bruise on his cheek.

(The bruise that was now expertly covered; apparently, Cancer's lucky item of the day was a makeup kit. That didn't explain how Midorima was able to conceal it so masterfully, but Kuroko suspected Kise's involvement.)

Dismissing either of his pack mates from his mind for the moment, Kuroko turned to stare at Kagami instead.

They were standing inside the bullet train station, waiting for the train that would take Kuroko and the other two to Kyoto. They still had some good ten minutes until it was time to go, but it didn't seem like enough time at all for everything Kuroko wanted to say. And there were so many things. He didn't know where to start.

Fortunately for him, Kagami didn't have the same problem.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come along?"

The worry was written all over his face, and not for the first time Kuroko feels touched. What did he do to deserve someone as amazing as Kagami Taiga in his life?

But, he shook his head. "I'm sorry, Kagami-kun, but this is a family matter. My cousins wouldn't like if a brought a stranger with me." That, at least, was the truth. If you switched the words 'family' and 'stranger' with 'pack' and 'human'.

"Cousins," Kagami repeats hollowly. "As in, the same cousins that drove you from home and left you to waste away in the back of an alley?"

The silence thickens between them, until the redhead lets out a sigh, cursing softly. A big hand falls on Kuroko's head, mussing his hair.

"I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have brought it up, not like this and especially not with the... funeral." He winces at his own awkward words. "But I get it, you know? Family is family, no matter if they are a bunch of assholes too. I'm just worried about you."

Kuroko lets a small smile flit across his face for the briefest of moments, dislodging Kagami's rough hand out of his head and cradling it in his own hands.

"I thank Kagami-kun for his concern. But to be honest, I'm more worried about Kagami-kun. However are you going to survive on your own?"

The human splutters indignantly. "Oi! At least I can do more than boil an egg!"

"I make the meanest boiled egg." Kuroko deadpans, face blank of emotions but eyes still holding a glint of mischief.

It looks like the redhead wants to argue, but something flickers inside his crimson eyes and his body adopts a rigid posture, face growing serious. Kuroko straightens himself in response, shoulders thrown back, neck angled up to stare at the taller man's face.

"Be safe," Kagami whispers, something fierce and demanding in his eyes, steadily staring at Kuroko's face for what feels like an eternity.

The werewolf nodded. He could already see his two pack brothers heading their way, Midorima dragging his bag along and Kise's arms overflowing with packets of storage-bought food. "I will."

There's no more time. This is where they part ways. As Kuroko follows behind the two alphas, he can't help but wonder if they will ever see each other again.

It is while Kuroko waits patiently for his turn to get into the bullet train that he hears Kagami's voice again, calling for him from the other side of the aisle.

"Kuroko!"

His heart picks up a beat, as he turns his head to stare at the redhead.

"I... I-!" Taiga pauses, seems to flounder for a minute, face growing progressively red. He finally blurts out "I will have rented a new space for us, by the time you're back! So... So don't get too comfortable in Kyoto, you disappearing bastard!"

A small part of Kuroko deflates at that, but a larger part lights up in joy. Kagami had said  _us._ This new place he was going to find, it would be theirs, whenever Kuroko finally returned. Because Kagami believed, despite all his doubts and fears, that the teacher will come back. It was a promise, and one he intended to keep.

_I will_ , Kuroko thinks, as he finally enters the train, picking the seat by the small window.

_I promise I will come back to you._

 

* * *

 

The ride to Kyoto wouldn't take more than three hours, if even that. Nevertheless, Kuroko couldn't decide what was worse; finally arriving at their destination and having to confront all the other members of his old pack, or stall for as long as possible, and having to bear Kise's presence in their enclosed space.

"Are you comfortable Kurokocchi? I have a blanket and a pillow in my bag somewhere, so if you want it just ask. Ne, ne, aren't you hungry? When was the last time you ate? You are so pale, you look like a ghost!... Oh wait, you always look like a ghost... What about water? Are you thirsty?"

And the barrage of questions went on the same vein for the first seven minutes of their travel, Kise fussing over him like a mother to her son.

From Kise's other side, Midorima let out what Kuroko was pretty sure was a strangled whimper. Not that he could blame him. Two minutes into Kise's spiel, and Kuroko wanted to whimper too. He had already gone past that point though, and dove right into the homicidal urges everyone is bound to experience at least once whenever they spent more than five minutes in the blond's company.

He had already discarded his plan of tossing the alpha out the window (it was too tiny, not even Kuroko would manage to go through it) when he realized that silence had descended between the three of them. Looking up, he noticed Midorima had taken refuge in a pair of bright orange headphones Kuroko didn't remember him ever owning, decorated with the black number 10. His eyes were closed listening to the music (Beethoven, if Kuroko wasn't wrong), and his taped fingers entwined lightly with Kise's. The casual touch made his Wolf rear its head again in wanting. Werewolves were a tactile bunch; always making excuses to touch or just brush against one they considered pack, the action settling some of the animal instinct that ruled them. Kuroko hasn't touched or been touched by another wolf for more than a year. That is, until his old pack mates decided to barge inside his life.

Kise, he noted, was looking at him through half-lidded eyes and a small, content smile. There was an intenseness to his gaze that made the bluenette shift on his seat.

It has been a long time since someone looked at him like that.

After five more minutes of prolonged staring, Kuroko finally had enough.

"Kise-san, please stop that."

Kise blinked, looking bewildered for a moment before understanding dawned on him. He leaned back on his own seat, directing his gaze elsewhere. "Sorry Kurokocchi. It's just..." his hold on Midorima's fingers tightened. "I haven't seen any of you for so long..."

Kuroko's brow furrowed. "What do you mean? You were in Kyoto with all the others, weren't you?" the way Kise said that was almost like he had spent the entire last year alone. But that was impossible.

Wasn't it?

The blond shook his head, ruefully. "Actually, Midorimacchi spent a lot of his time in Osaka, Nijimuracchi went to America to live with his girlfriend while Aominecchi-" his voice hitched at the name. "Well, no one knows exactly where he's been at. He wandered a lot, from what I could gather from the others. Akashicchi and Murasakibaracchi's the only ones who stayed at the estate for long periods of time and even they traveled away sometimes. The latter especially hasn't been very happy with the situation. He will probably be glad everyone's returning home."

Kuroko looked at him with wide eyes, mouth hanging open a little. No one could blame his disbelief though. What Kise was saying amounted to sacrilege, almost. Since when did any Teiko wolf left their territory, for whatever reason that didn't involve a direct order from their Alpha? The things that had just left Kise's mouth... they were impossible, inconceivable. It was like he was saying that their pack had fragmented in the year he's been gone. But Kuroko was the only one supposed to leave. It couldn't be his fault, could it?

_Besides,_ a dark voice muttered from the depths of his mind,  _they were already breaking apart long before you._

"And I've been living in Hokkaido. Akashicchi ordered me to stay there after... after you left."

And here Kuroko thought it couldn't get more absurd. Akashi had  _banished_ Kise?

"Why would he send you there?" he asked after finally finding his voice again.

"Well, he didn't send me _there_ exactly. He said, and I quote, 'as far away from here as you can without actually leaving Japan'"

Punished. Kise was punished.

But  _why?_

"Ehh~ Don't look at me that way, Kurokocchi!" he smiled, so cheerful and bright that it hurt to look at it. Kuroko wondered for the first time today just how fake that grin was. "It was deserved. I was being a prat, going against the Alpha like I did..." he trailed off, once again staring at Kuroko's face like there was something in there he simply couldn't look away from. Like Kuroko would disappear the moment Kise averted his gaze.

"Well, it doesn't matter now. We are going home." The soft smile was back, but the look continued. The slightly haunted look Tetsuya never thought he would see in Ryouta's face.

Kuroko could only nod, head spinning with the shocking information. "Home," he said back, mouth dry.

He wasn't sure how, but the thought of going back home had become even more distasteful.

 

* * *

 

It had been absolute hell.

If Akashi had been trying to teach him a lesson, then Kise had learned it a hundred times over by now. Never defy Akashicchi's orders. Never go against them.

Never be so stupid as to threaten the Alpha.

In Kise's honest opinion, Akashicchi had gone a little overboard in his punishment. Yes, he _had_ been a fool by thinking he could simply overrule Akashi when it concerned Tetsuya, but all but exiling him from their own home? Banning him from stepping paw into Pack Lands again until Akashi willed it?

That hadn't been a punishment. That had been torture.

For the past year he had wandered Hokkaido, coming to bear a strong hate for the (admittedly pleasant) island. The loneliness was enough to drive him mad, but then Kise would often see bonded mates frolicking about with their pups, and the jealousy and longing he would feel rising up in his chest was enough to make him feel physically sick.

The worst though, were the nights of full moon, when Kise would be forced to change, only for his wolf to come out and realize all over again that they were alone. Those first nights were terrible; all of them spent howling to high heavens, waiting for an answering call that would never come. Sometimes, rare and few between, a pair of wolves would take pity on him and let him run with them for the night. However, those instances didn't happen often, as the majority of Hokkaido's Werewolf population was made of packs consisting only of mates and their young offspring. And no wolf in their right mind would allow an unknown loner near a defenseless litter. Kise had allowed himself to be chased away by overprotective parents more times than he cared to count.

He had been a right mess for weeks after that, unable to cope with his isolation. His only reprieves came in the form of short calls and text messages he shared with Midorimacchi, Murasakibaracchi and Nijimuracchi. The latter had been especially supportive of his situation, reassuring him over the phone that sooner or later Akashi would call him back home and promising they would see each other again.

But Shuuzou was dead, and the only thing Kise would see were his ashes when it was time to spread them over Teiko's lands.

Never again would Kise see Nijimura, or talk and play with him. Never again would he press his wolf skin against the older wolf and share body heat, lift a muzzle and smell the scent of spring flowers. There would be no more patient silences and a willing ear to listen to him moan over his problems or just rambling on over unimportant things. No more punches in the head when Kise has done something absurdly stupid.

No more Shuuzou.

He hated that a part of him was actually _glad_ over a pack mate's death. That had prompted Akashi to call him back, hadn't it? Kise hated himself for that...

But he was so tired of being alone.

_Not alone,_ his Wolf barked contentedly.  _Pack's here. Shintarou. Tetsuya. Home._

_Yes,_ Kise agrees, drawing invisible circles on Midorimacchi's hand with a thumb and resisting the urge to bury his fingers in Kurokocchi's sky-blue hair and drag his head to rest on his chest.

Because home was where the heart is, as the saying goes. Kise had lived long enough without his heart.

_Never again,_ he thinks possessively, eyes flashing yellow as his gaze once again settles on Kuroko Tetsuya.

 

* * *

 

Unaware of Kise's silent thoughts, Kuroko looked out the window, noticing the grey clouds rolling in the sky. In a few minutes it would begin to rain.

_It had been raining back then too,_ he thought glumly, suddenly feeling exhausted.  _That day I met **him**._

Kuroko closed his eyes, and dreamed of better days. 

 

_"TETSUYA!"_

_The scream of tires against wet asphalt as well as his best friend's horrified shout were the only warnings Kuroko got before he realized he was going to die._

_Killed because he was too invisible for the drive to notice. What a way to go._

_And then there was a force slamming on him from behind, strong arms wrapped around him, the only steady thing in a world that had suddenly spiraled out of his control. The only things he could feel were the cold raindrops bearing down on him, the wind slapping at his face, his blood roaring in his ears._

_And the warmth emanating like a furnace from the man holding him against his chest._

_"Oh my God, Tetsuya! Are you alright? Did you hit your head? How many fingers am I holding up?" Ogiwara Shigehiro's worried face hovered above Kuroko as the other boy shoved three fingers into his face._

_"Maybe you should let him breath," a unknown voice sounded somewhere around him, and Tetsuya finally turned his head and laid eyes on his savior._

_A tall, tanned man, his strong body hidden away in a two-sizes-too-big hoodie, that had fallen back to reveal a handsome -oh, so handsome- face. The deepest blue eyes Kuroko had ever seen stared back at him steadily, and something in his chest stuttered to a stop. There was something about this man, something different, something..._

_Wild._

_And he was looking at Kuroko like starving wolf would a lamb._

_"You're right, you're right, but...! Tetsuya! Tetsuya!" Shige screamed in his ear. "Oh, God, oh my God, did the bastard hit you? Can you hear me? I'm gonna take you to the hospital, don't worry! Everything's gonna be fine Tetsuya, hold on! Alright? Don't panic!"_

You are the only one panicking,  _Tetsuya wanted to say, but his entire being was frozen stiff as that navy-haired man let his eyes roam over his body. Despite the freezing rain, Kuroko felt hot._

_"Tetsuya, was it?" the stranger said in a rough whisper. His voice was a low, comforting rumble, and he shivered at the sound. A part of his mind that could still think wondered if his voice could go even deeper when aroused. "That's a mouthful. I think I will call you Tetsu. My name's Daiki. Aomine Daiki. Remember it. I'm the guy who saved your life."_

_In a swift move that took both him and Shige by surprise, Aomine lifted him off the floor. For the second time that day Kuroko felt those dark arms wrap around him, cradling him close against a firm chest._

_"I'm gonna keep you safe."_

_Tetsuya could only nod, too stupefied to do anything else as he was carried away princess-style by a complete stranger that had just saved his life, Shige wailing and following after them._

_He must have blacked out somewhere, for when he woke up he was already at the hospital, with Shige drooling on his white sheets and a exquisite bouquet of lavender roses resting by his bedside table._

_Didn't they mean love at first sight?_

_Their second meeting was a week after he had left the hospital, the sweet smell of roses still haunting his memory. It had been just as random and abrupt, at least in Kuroko's fault. He had been playing street ball with Shige and a few other friends, their team being massacred left right and centre. Kuroko had lain parallel to the ground, where he had flopped down after exhausting the last of his reserves of stamina when a shadow suddenly blocked his view of the sun._

_Thinking it was Shige, Kuroko groaned and told him "I hate you."_

_The chuckle that followed made the hair on his arms prickle._

_"I'm not sure what I did to make you feel this way apart from saving your life, but I'm sure we can discuss it after I take you out for dinner. What do you say?"_

_And Aomine Daiki grinned down at him, holding a basketball under one arm and extending the free hand to help him up._

_"I... I would like that very much."_

_Kuroko took his hand. It was rough and warm, with callouses and little scars that crisscrossed over his knuckles, telling the tales of a boyhood spent chasing after fights and adventure. And Kuroko knew, in that moment, that he had fallen in love with Aomine-kun's smile._

_He opened his mouth to say something-_

 

"Kurokocchi. Kurokocchi, wake up. We're here."

Kuroko was gently shaken awake, but all the gentleness in the world wouldn't stop his wide eyes and the snarl halfway out of his lips before he remembered where he was.

The train. Kise. Midorima. Kyoto.

Daiki.

They had finally arrived. Kuroko blinked a few times before standing up from his seat and stretching his body, ignoring the look Kise gave him at the action. He had decided in the perfect course of action which would enable him to survive the upcoming weekend; he would simply ignore everyone and everything, thus retaining his cool and -more importantly- his sanity. He would not let his resolve to go back to Kagami crumble. None of them, not Akashi or Kise or even Aomine would be able to stop him from leaving again.

And then the smell of sea wind hit him dead on.

(The Wolf jumped from its position slumped against the cage's bars. It jumped and howled, a sound so wild and powerful it almost clawed its way up inside Tetsuya's throat. It threw itself against the locked door, putting all of his weight behind it, trying to force it open.  _Mate,_ it cried, sounding desperate and determined all at once. _Mate, mate, mate!_ )

He felt Kise stiffen behind him, saw the way Midorima stopped short just ahead of them.

"Akashi didn't tell me you had already returned," the green haired werewolf said carefully. "Nor that you would be meeting us at the station."

"He doesn't know," his voice was graver than before, sounding more like a growl than anything else. How much time did he spend alone, running in the wild as both wolf and man and not needing to speak with other humans, for him to sound like that?

It wouldn't be the first time that that had happened.

Sky-blue eyes met dark sapphires, and Kuroko felt the whole world stop.

Aomine Daiki didn't smile, didn't wave, nor did he do anything that might be passing for a greeting. He just looked at Tetsuya, at Ryouta behind him, and his eyes burned brighter than hellfire.

"Yo, Kise, Tetsu. It's been a while."

This might be harder than he thought.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A tense car drive lands Kuroko in a precarious position. Kise is not helpful and Midorima just wants to arrive at home in one piece.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not edited, but it's late and I'm too tired to proof read everything. Enjoy.  
> Warning: mention of murder and cannibalism at the very end (does it count as cannibalism if you're a wolf at the time?). Just one line and nothing graphic, but I though better to warn people

After the train ride, they would be taking the car Murasakibara had left for their use parked near the train station. Their destiny was the far less populated northern area of Kyoto, where the valley's mountains where still green and wild. The ride would last less than half a hour.

This seemingly short period of time became much more pressing when, somehow, Kuroko was coerced into sharing the car's backseat with both Kise and Aomine, while Midorima took the wheel. He had tried to take the passenger's seat next to the man, but before he could so much as touch the door handle a dark-skinned hand wrapped around his thin wrist. He was all but powerless against the bruising grip Aomine had on him, thus being led away to the backseat without so much as a by your leave. He thinks he might have caught Midorima giving him a pitying look.

You knew you had it bad when _Midorima_ pitied you.

Kuroko found himself squashed between both alphas, with Kise's hand resting lightly on his knee and Aomine's arm serving as a pillow for his unwilling head. The sensation of being boxed in rattled even his wolf, who, though happy about the close proximity between all three of them, also was beginning to feel suffocated. Kuroko almost felt vindicated by that alone.

Regardless, he would really be getting claustrophobic if he didn't put some space between them right now. Their personal scents saturated the air, making breathing a really taxing task.

"Kise-san, why don't you move to the front? It's a little tight in here." He didn't bother telling that to Aomine. Talking to a wall would yield the same result. At least Kise pretended to pay attention.

Predictably, the blond whined. "But Kurokocchi~! I don't want to stay away from you!"

Kuroko could already feel his patient dwindling. "We will still be sharing the same space, Kise-san. The difference is that I will be able to breath."

A snort came from Midorima. He hadn't started the car yet, probably waiting for the three of them to arrange themselves.

"Tetsu's right, Kise" Aomine's voice rumbled from his left. It still sounded more like a growl than anything else. "You're taking too much space. Move." The order was punctuated by a sharp glare and the beginnings of a snarl.

Kuroko stiffened. Why was Aomnie trying to assert his dominance in such a forceful manner, when he knew that he never needed to do so when it came to Kise? The blond was always more than willing to do anything for the bluenette, didn't he know that-

_Oh._

_He doesn't._

_We... really have been apart for too long, haven't we?_

Long enough that now they were little more than four strangers sharing a car that just happened to head in the same direction. Not for the first time, Kuroko regretted ever agreeing to come in this trip.

_We don't even know each other anymore._

And he really didn't know if he wanted to again.

"Are you trying to order me around, Aominecchi?" Kise's voice sounded cheerful, but there was deeper undertone to his words that were not lost in anyone inside the car. The hand on his knee had disappeared.

Aomine in turn did not look worried. He remained in the same careless position, practically slouching against the leather seat of the car, head cocked to the side while he observed Kise through slight narrowed eyes.

"Are you going to disobey me, Kise?"

A tense moment passed in silence, and just when Kuroko thought Kise would jump on Aomine's throat, he drew back, smile back in his handsome face.

"Only because Aominecchi asked," he chirped, getting out of the car and into the passenger's seat. From the back, Kuroko could see the way Midorima's hands lessened their hold on the steering wheel.

So. He had not been the only one worried a fight for dominance would break out inside the car. No wonder they hadn't left yet, Midorima probably knew something like this was bound to happen and had made the executive decision to wait before it all went down while they were on the road. While Kuroko was pretty sure all of them could survive a car crash, no one wanted to be the one to explain to Akashi _why_ they had to spend money in a new car.

No wonder Akashi trusted Midorima to be the smart one above all the other idiots that made up the Teiko Pack.

(Kuroko staunchly ignored the thought that once upon a time, he had been one of the trusted ones too. 

He wasn't Teiko anymore.)

When they finally left, the silence that fell between the four could almost be described as comfortable. It probably would be, if Kuroko stopped being worried about his body's close proximity to Aomine Daiki.

Alas, he had reason to worry though, when a bump in the road caused Kuroko to fall back on the alpha's body. Aomine, never one to waste time, instantly buried his face in his hair, then at the junction between the omega's neck and collarbone.

The snarl that filled the air wasn't sound human.

"Tetsuya," the words were almost indistinguishable, the arm around his midsection crushing him against Daiki's hard chest. His eyes, when Kuroko dared to look up, had gone completely yellow, not a trace of blue -of _humanity_ \- to be found in them.

"Why the fuck do you smell like another man?"

"Aomine," Midorima snapped from the driver's seat. "Not now."

"Stay out of this, Midorima. Well?" Daiki went back to his questioning.

Fed up with being restrained, Kuroko dug his fingers painfully in the arm holding him down, letting his nails sharpen until claws scratched against Aomine's skin. The alpha hissed, more in surprise than pain, momentarily losing his hold and allowing Kuroko to use that distraction to plaster himself on the other side of the car, as far away from the other werewolf as possible. The dark expression on Aomine's face told Kuroko all he need to know about the thoughts running around the alpha's head.

Despite the dark rage shadowing his face, Aomine's voice is gentle, more soft than anything he has said since they met today. "Make me bleed again, Tetsu," his injured arm flexed, thin streams of blood trailing sluggishly down the rapidly healing cuts, and Kuroko could only stare, hackles raised. "And I will take that as an invitation."

And he would, Kuroko knew he would. The hungry look Aomine sends at Kuroko is more than enough to convince him, making a shiver go down his spine. The worst part is that he can't decide if it's in fear, or anticipation.

“I don’t want you to touch me, Daiki. Please, respect my decision.”

All he received back was a scoff. Unsurprising. “Answer my question Tetsu. Who is he?”

Kuroko pursues his lips. Like hell was he going to say anything about Kagami.

Unfortunately for him, Kise doesn’t have the same scruples.

“His name’s Kagami Taiga.” Kise says breezily, as if unaware of the growing dark cloud of rage sitting in the back. “He and Kurokocchi were sharing an apartment in Tokyo.”

Kise’s golden eyes connect with Kuroko’s across the rear mirror. Slowly, the omega shakes his head. The alpha falters, and for a second, Kuroko dares to hope that not everything will go to hell.

“It seems that the human wants to fuck our Kurokocchi.”

The sound of claws tearing through leather is so loud Midorima startles, almost driving the car into a tree. Kuroko has to hold on not to fall off his seat at the sudden stop.

Midorima turns his head around to glare at Aomine, green eyes now blazing yellow. “ _Have you lost your goddamn mind?!_ ” he hissed.

Aomine, whose claws were still gripping the ripped leather, didn’t seem to hear him. Instead his gaze was focused solidly on the back of Kise’s head.

“You’re lying.” To Kuroko’s surprise, his voice still sounded strangely even.

“Why would I lie about something like that?” Kise retorts, examining his nails with a uninterested air. The tension on his shoulders bellied the calm he was trying to project. “Besides, you smelled it, didn’t you? They spent so much time together, Kurokocchi practically stinks of him.” The disgusted was apparent at the last part.

Aomine continued to stare at Kise, before he blinked calmly and said, to no in particular; “I’m going to kill him.”

Enough was enough.

In a flash, Kuroko was on him, hands gripping Aomine’s shoulder and fighting against the urge not to wrap them around his throat instead. He wasn’t fighting very hard.

“Stop that. You stop that right now, you idiot, Kagami-kun hasn’t done anything to deserve this-”

“‘Kagami-kun’,” Aomine repeats, bewilderment and rage dripping from every syllable. “You call him ‘Kagami-kun’.”

Kuroko wants to shake him harder. He does so. “If you touch a single hair on his head…”

“You will what?” the alpha challenged, a leering, arrogant smirk back on his face. “Kill me? You might be fast, but I’m no slouch either and three times stronger than you as well. The only one who can beat me is me. So killing is not an option. What’s next? You will leave?” the smirk turned bitter. “You already did. _Twice_. Look where that got you.”

Kuroko lets go of him like he was burnt.

“Aomine,” Midorima, always the voice of reason, warns from his place. “This is neither the time nor the place for this discussion.”

“Do us all a favor and stay quiet Midorimacchi,” Kise casually says, gaze fixed on the rear mirror so he could see what was happening in the back without having to move his head. “I want to see where this is going.”

“When was the last time you shifted fully, Tetsu? When was the last time you had anything more fulfilling than a rat or a squirrel? Skulking around back alleys, having to avoid humans at every turn, surviving on scraps that barely manage to keep you alive… I can smell the beginnings of starvation from here. You were never that strong to begin with, but now you’re positively pathetic.”

The words cut deeper than Kuroko would have liked, those old feelings of shame and inadequacy rising from the dark hole he had cast them into. It infuriated the omega, how even after all this time Aomine still had the power to make or break him.

But, no. He would not break. Not again.

(Never again.)

“What about Aomine-kun?” he asked sweetly. “I’ve heard you’ve been running wild around Japan, never stopping in one spot too long… Why? Did Akashi-kun got tired of dealing with your bullshit and choose to cut his losses? Or did you finally decided to turn yourself into the mindless beast you’ve always been deep inside? Have you gone back to being a lone  _mutt_ , maybe?”

Say whatever you want about Kuroko’s less than stellar physical performance. Few could match him when it came to verbal sparring.

Aomine stared at him with wide eyes that had returned back to their natural dark blue color mid-way through Kuroko’s small speech, a trace of hurt flickering inside them. For a second, Kuroko felt horribly guilty for bringing up Daiki's past and throwing it back on his face like that. Then the alpha's face was being covered by that familiar anger, and Kuroko guarded himself against the incoming retaliation.

Not even he could have prepared for that tough.

“At least I’m not a coward. I can accept what I am. What about you, Tetsuya?” the words were said venomously, aimed to hurt and make bleed. And then, just to twist the knife deeper, "Nijimura would have been disappointed in you."

His eyes burned with the sudden desire to cry as grief threatened to choke him, but Kuroko swallowed it down, furiously blinking the tears back. He couldn't allow himself to break in front of Aomine. That would be admitting defeat, and he couldn't- he _wouldn't_ -

Suddenly, Kuroko felt tired. Bone-deep tired. He was so done arguing with Aomine.

Without a word, the omega opened his door and slipped out from the car, heading to the trees at the roadside. Kise yelped.

“Kurokocchi! Where are you going?!”

Midorima, after observing him for a moment, sighed and nodded. “Leave the clothes out of sight. Almost no one comes this far, but better be safe than sorry.” Green eyes narrowed at his retreating back. “You better arrive in time. Akashi will be even more displeased if you take too long.”

Kuroko nodded, having crossed the treeline and ignoring the way he could feel Aomine’s eyes burning holes on his back. He had barely entered the vegetation proper when Aomine snarled loudly and opened his own door, slamming it shut behind him as he followed after the omega, already in the process of removing his black shirt.

Inside the car, Midorima sighed again. “I hope you know that this is all your fault,” he tells Kise crossly.

Kise simply smiled in response, something like longing in his eyes as he watched the two other werewolves disappear inside the forest.

“I know Midorimacchi,” he sounded profoundly smug, relaxing against his seat. “I know.”

 

* * *

 

Shifting again in less than two days was harder than Kuroko thought it would be. After months changing only once every few weeks, his body had become unaccustomed to it, and now Kuroko was paying the price for his own carelessness. There was truth in Aomine’s words after all, and Kuroko could admit it now as he felt the burning pain of his joints snapping in and out of their sockets, trying to rearrange themselves in the form he wanted them to.

Out of the bushes, a large, black-as-night wolf emerged, padding towards him and growling softly in greeting.

Daiki was, to this day, one of the largest wolves Kuroko had ever seen, bigger than any natural wolf should be. His fur, shorter than most, was all black from the tip of his ears down to the end of his tail, which served him well during the night hunts their pack used to partake every month. His mouth was open, pink tongue hanging out and exposing gleaming white fangs that, Kuroko knew, had ripped more than a few throats back in the day.

What was he thinking? As if Aomine didn’t still kill things to this day.

Sprawled naked and gasping on the ground, Kuroko roughly pushed the wet nose sniffing at him away from his face, eyes almost rolling to the back of his skull as his body _finally_  twisted one final time.

The white wolf laid on the forest ground, panting heavily in exertion and curling up into himself. Unlike so many times before, it wasn’t the stench of garbage cans and the dregs of city life that greeted him. Instead, the heavenly smell of nature, left mostly untouched by humans, filled his nostrils. It was a comfort that did wonders to lift his spirits.

Something nuzzled his back.

Not feeling like standing up yet, Tetsuya rolled around, watching the big, black wolf step back a little so he could lower his muzzle and lick at Testuya’s chin. Daiki let out a low whine, the meaning behind it very clear.

_Sorry._

Tetsuya growled, snapping at the alpha when he tried again. Daiki was persistent though. No matter how many time Tetsuya rolled around to give him his back, the larger wolf would just try again at a different angle. During one of the tries, Tetsuya almost managed to bite Daiki’s ear off before the other wolf’s quick reflexes allowed him to move away in time. The two of them stared at each other in a tense standoff, Tetsuya growling low in his throat while Daiki meekly bowed his head.

It was a strange sight to anyone else, seeing the much bigger and stronger creature look so submissive towards the comparatively tiny white wolf.

When the alpha whimpered though, the sad, pitiful sound echoing between them, Tetsuya caved. He had never been very good at resisting Daiki, especially when the latter would look at him with the Puppy Dog Eyes™. Huffing, he laid back down, allowing Daiki to come closer and accepting the apology. He even gave an apologetic lick of his own, which the other wolf accepted with relish. Then, once that was done and out of the way, Tetsuya promptly let his furry head fall to the ground. He could smell no other predators around expect the two of them and humans were too far down the valley for one to stumble across him if he decided to take a nap.

A nap sounded like a marvelous idea right now. Facing the Pack's Alpha again, tired as he was, would put him at disadvantage. It would require all of Tetsuya’s strength to survive through that encounter. After he was properly rested he would head towards the Teiko House. Until then, he was sure Shintarou would cover for him.

Mind made up, Tetsuya was just about to close his eyes when Daiki nuzzled him again. The omega looked at the other wolf confusedly.

Daiki let out a bark, tail high and wagging behind him. His yellow eyes were alight with mischief.

_Play._

Tetsuya growled. No way was he going to go running around the forest chasing after Daiki.

It wasn’t until he saw the predatory glint in his eyes that the omega realized he wouldn’t the one going to do the chasing.

He yelped and hastily scrambled out of the way as the black wolf came running at him full speed. At the last second, he avoided being plastered against a tree, instead twisting his body mid-air and using the momentum to charge at Tetsuya again.

Without wanting to, Tetsuya started to get excited, the blood pumping in his veins. It had been a long time since he had anyone to play tag with.

Letting out a bark that sounded almost like a laugh, Tetsuya evaded Daiki's attempts at pinning him down three more times, before playfully snapping at his muzzle and shooting between the trees, hearing the sound of heavy paws trampling the vegetation behind him as Daiki gave chase.

For that moment, and only then, Kuroko Tetsuya forgot that he didn't want to be there, that he had come only for a funeral and would be returning to Tokyo as soon as possible. He forgot about his apartment, his job and his promise to Kagami; forgot that the wolf chasing after him was the man who saved and ruined his life in equal measures, the man he had loved and trusted and been betrayed by.

He forgot, for that small moment in eternity, that the wolf behind him was Aomine Daiki, who had murdered and eaten his best friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: After a chase around the forest, Kuroko and Aomine reach Teiko's safe house. But there's more waiting for them there than just a funeral.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a chase around the forest, Kuroko and Aomine reach Teiko's safe house, Rakuzan. But there's more waiting for them there than just a funeral.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. - (Lk 15:24)

By the time they reached the manor house, the sun had already sunk on the horizon and Tetsuya was bitterly regretting his life choices.

What had possessed him to _play tag_ with Aomine?

As if the two of them had just seen each other yesterday. As if Aomine hadn’t played a significant part in ruining Tetsuya’s life. As if they were still friends, still pack.

Still lovers.

Tetsuya, still in wolf form, snapped irritably at Aomine, who had already changed back and was kneeling at his side, looking up at the house and burying his fingers in Tetsuya’s white fur, unmindful of his companion’s sharp teeth dangerously close to his skin.

The alpha only laughed him off, but backed away all the same, giving him some space. He continued to stare at the house.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it, Tetsu?” he asked softly, the low rumble of his voice comforting, no matter how much Tetsuya wished it was not. “I had almost forgotten what it looked like.”

The house, affectionately named Rakuzan after the alpha who built it, looked more like a mansion than anything else. Made up of old stone, it was three stories above ground, with a full basement and a small attic making up the third floor. In the dark, Rakuzan looked ancient and foreboding. It certainly was old; the gated manor and it’s landscapes, as well as the 500 acre of forest surrounding it, had served as the ancestral home-ground of countless generations of Teiko wolves, since the omega female Akasha choose to settle her pack in this area. Tetsuya had actually forgotten how large it was. And how lonely it must have been, for someone to live in there all by himself…

His heart clenched and Testuya shook his head, turning tail to hide under the bushes so he could change back, away from Aomine’s prying eyes.

“It’s nothing I haven’t seen before!” the insufferable alpha called, sounding smug.

Tetsuya snarled from behind his bush, which turned into a yelp halfway as a joint popped back in place. Aomine laughed.

Someone – probably Midorima, bless his soul – had left clothes for them to wear, so at least Kuroko wouldn’t have to knock on the door buck-naked. Any good will left him though, when he saw just what his options were.

He would either have to wear a ridiculously large purple t-shirt (he suspected Murasakibara’s) with matching shorts and walk around looking like he’s drowning in fabric, or have to conform himself to the (much more reasonably-sized) black slacks and white dress shirt neatly pressed and waiting for him innocently on the ground. There were even black social shoes next to it.

And all of it smelled uncannily of Akashi Seijuurou.

It seems his battle would begin before he even stepped foot on the porch.

With gritted teeth, Kuroko picked the slacks and put them on with more force than was absolutely necessary. At least, the omega consoled himself, he would look exceptional on them. Akashi could always be trusted to have good taste.

Minutes later, he was standing in front of the double oak door, a shirtless Aomine by his side (he had decided to ditch the t-shirt and keep only the shorts). His hand had barely brushed against the wood before the door was practically being wrenched open.

A long arm reached out and pulled him into a suffocating hug, a face burying itself into his neck and sniffing deeply. Kuroko coughed as long strands of lavender colored hair got into his mouth and then breathed in deeply, getting familiarized again with the scent of sweet marshmallow and strawberries.

It had been a while since the last time he had smelled another omega. They weren’t common in Tokyo.

He had forgotten how comforting it was.

“Kuro-chin~ You’re back. I missed Kuro-chin.”

Murasakibara Atsushi was a giant of a man. Standing at a whopping 6’10’’, Kuroko still had to see meet someone taller than the other omega. Even Midorima just came up to his chin. It was always something that mildly pissed Kuroko off, the fact that he was shorter than almost everyone he met, including the women. But the only time he actually felt the difference in height, was when he was around Murasakibara. It would probably be even worse if the purple-haired werewolf actually used his monstrous height for intimidation purposes. As it is, it’s difficult to feel intimidated by Murasakibara, when the omega was usually slouching in place, lazily going through life while munching on a bag of chips.

The only time one had to watch out for Murasakibara was when food got involved. Then people could truly appreciate the sight of a two hundred meters tall giant going on a rampage.

Kuroko patted Murasakibara’s back. “It’s good to see you too, Murasakibara-san.” He managed to wheeze out.

He was crushed further into the other’s chest. His lungs cried out for air.

“Mura-chin’s gone, Kuro-chin. _He’s gone_.” The whine that left Murasakibara’s mouth was a visceral sound, making Kuroko want to inch forward and cuddle up to the bigger werewolf. From the corner of his eye, he saw Aomine step closer, his expression twisted with pain, torn between age-old instincts of alphas to offer protection to an omega in distress and his respect for an old friend and pack mate’s privacy.

At the reminder of why they were there, tears burned their way to Kuroko’s eyes before he blinked them away. _Not now,_ he chided himself. _First see to Murasakibara. Then confront Akashi._

 **_Then_ ** _you can fall apart._

“It’s alright Atsushi. Everything will be alright.”

He was liberated from his slow death via crushing, just enough so that teary violet eyes could look down at him. “Promise?”

Kuroko could count on one hand the number of times he had ever heard Murasakibara sound so lost, with plenty of fingers left over. It pained his heart to have to add another finger to the count. His grip tightened on the other omega’s arms.

“Promise.”

They stood there staring at each other on the doorway of Rakuzan for a few seconds, before a cough interrupted them. Aomine, still looking slightly constipated, gruffly shooed them inside. “Gonna catch a damn cold here outside like this…” he grumbled, and the omegas wisely didn’t point out the fact that it was very hard indeed for any them to ‘catch a cold’ with their werewolf bodies.

Seeing that Aomine had stopped short right before passing through the door, Murasakibara turned and gave a slight nod, granting the alpha the go-ahead to enter. Kuroko stared, unable to remember the last time any pack member had to receive permission to enter the house. He didn’t think he ever had. Surely it hadn’t been that long?

But it had. Oh, it had.

(What was this sinking feeling in his gut?)

“Come Kuro-chin,” Murasakibara tugged at his hand. “Aka-chin is waiting for us in the study.”

Kuroko nodded, letting himself be led from Rakuzan’s entry hall and into the large room off to the side, Aomine following three steps behind.

After the kitchen, the study was the communal place in the manor, the one where you can most often find someone spending the time, be it taking a nap on one of the sinfully-comfortable couches, reading a book from the numerous shelves, curled up before the big fireplace or just working on some paperwork, that was the room where pack meetings were conducted and everyone could relax with each other.

Kuroko never thought he would see it again.

There were just some lamps on scattered around the study, most of the light coming from the fireplace, which cast the room in more shadows than usual, giving it an ominous air that made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Kise was sprawled on one of the black couches, but straightened up to attention the moment Murasakibara, followed closely behind by Kuroko and Aomine, entered. Midorima, who had been sitting on a sofa, glanced at the clock hanging on the wall before shooting him a look of censure. Kuroko ignored both of them, Kise’s smile and Midorima’s disapproval, his focus centered exclusively on the figure standing with his back to the fire.

Once, Akashi Seijuurou would have been called a handsome man.

Not the rugged handsomeness of Aomine, his face far too regal for that. But not the sheer beauty Kise had been graced with either. He had still been striking nonetheless, with his perfectly symmetrical face, the high cheekbones and the patrician nose, silky red locks artfully framing his face.

But that was a time before he became leader of the Teiko Pack, back when he would still think about going to college or parties, or even just going down to the near town, buy some groceries.

Nowadays, Akashi only ever left the house to go run in the woods.

It wasn’t like now Akashi was heinous to look at. Before, he had been close to Kise in the good-looks department, and not even the change was able to erase all of that. But no one would ever look at Akashi Seijuurou again and have the first thought in their head be _what a handsome guy._ Akashi’s looks differed too much from society’s normal standards of beauty for that to happen again.

His ears were a little too pointed and his canines a bit too sharp. His previous perfectly symmetrical face too unusual to look at, the bones of his facial structure changing into something a little less human, a little more beast. His hands were more often than not gnarled things, with long, tough, black claw-like nails. He could only stay upright with conscious effort, otherwise his spine would bend, giving him the appearance of a permanent crouch, as if he would drop on all fours at any moment and lunge.

His eyes, that were once a deep red-maroon color, now were a bright yellow, an unnerving sight on a (mostly) human face. Sometimes, on the _very_ good days, his right eye would revert back to its original color, but never for long.

So no, Akashi Seijuurou would never again be called handsome. That was the consequence of spending too much time as a wolf.

It had to hurt terribly, Kuroko would think time and again. Lost somewhere between man and beast, never quite knowing which way to go, his body stuck in the middle.

The first few weeks had been the worst. They had had to cover every reflective surface and hide every breakable and expensive family heirloom. Sometimes they forgot something, only to be reminded of it by the sound of shattering echoing through the manor. Akashi had turned feral, incapable of speech or rational thought. A creature completely ruled by instinct, he had acted as such, marking his territory and viciously attacking all alphas who came too close, keeping the omegas (Murasakibara, Nijimura and Kuroko himself) within his sight at all times, constantly scenting and watching over them.

Kuroko had been devastated seeing his dear friend, always so strong and brilliant and kind, reduced to this simple animal that only cared about the most basic of needs. He hadn’t been the only one.

Midorima would stare at the door of Akashi’s room for hours, never daring to enter. Kise, no matter how many times Akashi made him bleed for it, would always offer his kills to him, head bowed submissively and already preparing to be struck. Aomine couldn’t bear to be in the same house, camping out in the courtyard and releasing his rage on trees ‘till the skin over his knuckles was scrapped raw. Murasakibara would wander around the house, looking utterly lost and Nijimura would follow Akashi around, letting himself be manhandled this way and that, anything that could help calm the alpha’s fragile mental state. And Kuroko…

Well. Kuroko tried to pick up the pieces and glue them back together.

He failed.

(Once, and only once, did Kuroko manage to gather enough courage to ask Akashi how he could endure all this pain. It had been two months since the Incident no one talked about, and the alpha had still been struggling with his words. Seijuurou had looked at him, one of his eyes red-maroon for the first time since he changed back to human form – or as close to it as he would ever get again – and told him it was easier, now that Masaomi was dead.

 _It has to hurt_ , Kuroko thought then, _to know his own father is the reason of his misery_ )

“‘ _For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.'_ ”

If he had been surprised by Aomine’s gravelly voice when they met at the station, it was nothing compared to the sound of Akashi talking. The change had done something to his vocal chords, and now every time the redhead opened his mouth, his words sounded more like growls and snarls than it should be possible.

Akashi opens his arms wide, the flames behind him casting his silhouette in shadows and making him appear demonic. “The prodigal son has returned.”

Kuroko watched him silently, unmoved by the theatrics. This too, he remembers, was one of the alpha’s more irritating traits. He had forgotten.

(He had forgotten a lot, it seemed.)

“I thought you too cynical to quote the bible to me, Akashi-kun. Don’t tell me you’ve found your faith?”

Akashi’s lips twisted upwards briefly in what might have been a smile, but looked more like a snarl.

“It is never too late to find God’s path, Tetsuya. Besides, it gets boring after a while, stuck in this house with so few people for company. At times like those, even the bible begins to look appealing.”

The delivered jab didn’t affect just Kuroko. He saw the way Murasakibara and Midorima looked away, glaring at the floorboards, the way Kise gave a full-body flinch. The only one who seemed unaffected was Aomine, who had drifted closer to Kise and sat down on the other side of the couch.

Kuroko cleared his throat. “We are all here, Akashi-kun. When will the funeral take place?”

The somber atmosphere got heavier, and slowly, everyone turned back to look at the redhead, who was staring pensively at the omega.

“The funeral will take place at dawn, Shuuzou’s favorite hour of the day. That means we all can get a few more hours of sleep before it begins. However,” he looked at Kuroko, his stare sharp enough to pierce at his soul. “We have some things to talk about first.”

Midorima pushed up his glasses. “That we do. Nijimura was murdered, wasn’t he?”

No one would ever accuse Midorima of beating around the bush. Ever so slowly, Akashi nodded.

Immediate pandemonium ensued.

There was a loud, rage-filled snarl, Aomine’s hands clenching at the armrest of the couch, ripping it to shreds with his partially-turned claws. Kise had jumped from his sitting position, pacing up and down the carpet, eyes glinting yellow in the dim light of the study, body tense as of ready to attack. Midorima’s fists clenched, knuckles turning white until Kuroko could smell the sweet scent of blood where the alpha had cut himself with his own claws. Murasakibara didn’t say anything, but by the way he had straightened up his posture and was now glaring at Akashi, he looked every bit the terrifying giant he appeared to be, filling the room not only with his large build, but with his petrifying presence.

Seeing that Akashi was content to let things continue, Kuroko took a deep breath and let out a snarl of his own. At once, everyone stopped in their tracks and turned to stare at him.

“Let us all calm ourselves. Getting riled up isn’t going to help anyone, least of all Nijimura-san. If we want to find who did this to him, then we need to _calm the fuck down._ ”

Kise was looking at him with starry eyes. Kuroko ignored him. Some things, he had learned over the years, simply weren’t worth getting stressed over.

(He definitely ignored the hungry way Aomine was eyeing him up.)

He aimed his next words at Akashi, who had been watching him take control of the room with amusement. “Akashi-kun, maybe it’s better to start at the beginning. Could you explain to us how this all happened?”

The alpha nodded, reclining back in one of the empty sofas, lazily watching Kuroko. “Five days ago, I received an international phone call. As you can probably guess, it was Shuuzou. He sounded nervous over the phone, said that he may have found a clue pertaining to a certain case we encountered some years ago and had to abandon due to a lack of enough information.”

“I pressed him to tell me more, but he refused. Apparently, it was far too delicate information to be talked about over the phone. Besides, he still needed to collect some more proof to be certain. I thought that would be the end of it.” He hesitated. “It wasn’t. Barely a day later, Shuuzou called me again, this time sounding much more agitated. I would almost say he was scared, if it was anyone but Shuuzou. Told me he had been found out and was in danger. He kept asking for forgiveness, telling me that he had committed a terrible mistake. That it was his entire fault.”

Midorima raised an eyebrow. “I don’t suppose he told you what that mistake was?”

Akashi shook his head. “He said he was going to take a plane, come back to Japan. To Rakuzan. When I asked again, he said he would tell me everything when we met face-to-face.” The alpha’s shoulders slumped. “Obviously, that never happened. When I sent Atsushi to pick him up from the hotel he was staying in, he was missing. We tracked his scent all the way to an abandoned warehouse a few miles south of here. By the time we arrived, he was already dead, and his killer, or killers, gone.”

Silence followed Akashi’s words, before Kise finally spoke up. “So that’s it? No clues, no trails, nothing? No hope of avenging Nijimuracchi?”

“I didn’t say that,” Akashi rebutted. “As it is, we do have a clue.”

He stood up, heading towards the computer desk standing in the corner. They watched silently as he opened a drawer, carefully taking out a small bundle. When the alpha came closer and offered it to him, Kuroko took it with the same amount of caution Akashi had used it, gently unwrapping it. His breath caught at what he saw.

“This is impossible…” he whispered, staring at the thing sitting innocently in his hands.

“Apparently not.” Akashi retorted flippantly. Aomine, impatiently waiting for them to speak, finally barked, asking what they had found.

“But the Pact-” the omega started, ignoring Aomine and looking helpless from his cupped hands to Akashi and back.

“I think we can all agree that it’s broken.”

“Kurokocchi?” Kise questioned softly, amber eyes flickering from the tealette to the redhead uneasily. “What is it? What did you find?”

Numbly, Kuroko showed it to the room. Everyone’s eyes widened in surprise at the silver dagger in his hands.

The silver dagger sporting the sigil of the Hunters.

 

* * *

 

“This means war!” Aomine slammed his fist in the wall. He had gotten up and joined Kise in his pacing around the study, snarling under his breath. Murasakibara rumbled in agreement, violet eyes narrowed in a glare at the dagger laying in Kuroko’s hands.

“We can’t know for certain-” Kuroko began, only to be cut off by Kise.

“I think we can. Just look at it Kurokocchi,” he sent a disgusted look at the blade. “There’s silver even in the handle. Only one of _their kind_ could wield it to kill a werewolf. A Hunter killed a Teiko Wolf, unprovoked. They broke the Pact.”

Midorima intervened “We don’t know for sure, it could have been a beta,” he didn’t sound so certain.

Aomine snorted. “Are you even listening to yourself? You think Nijimura would be brought down by some no-name wolf? He was one of the strongest omegas in the Americas, _the_ strongest here in Japan, no matter what the blood-purists would like to say about bitten mutts.”

“I’m not saying Nijimura wasn’t strong, but all it would take was a single stroke of luck…” Kuroko trailed off.

“Luck? You think _luck_ had anything to do with it?!” Aomine sneered.

Kuroko snapped. “I’m trying to find an answer that doesn’t end in bloody war!” he yelled. It had been months since the last time he felt the need to raise his voice, but something about Aomine always made him do things he normally wouldn’t.

His shout was enough to subdue Aomine, but judging by his mutinous expression, the matter was far from over. Before Kuroko could open his mouth and berate him again though, the sudden silence was broken by a soft whimper, so quiet it almost escaped his sensitive hearing.

Kuroko stopped short, looking at Aomine in confusion. The alpha only stared back bemusedly. He looked around the study, watching the others’ reaction. Not one of them had made the sound. But then, who else was here?

Just then, a wailing cry came up from upstairs, and Kuroko stared up at the ceiling, shocked. Surely that couldn’t be what he thought it was…

“Akashi?” Midorima’s chocked voice sounded faint to his ears. “ _What is that?_ ”

“That, Shintarou, is the other reason I called you all here.”

Slowly, Kuroko turned to stare at Akashi, only to find the alpha observing him from his place reclined at the chair.

“Everyone, I would like you all to meet Teiko’s new addition. Nijimura Tetsuya. The second.” He paused, mouth curling up in his smile-turned-snarl. _Too many teeth,_ Kuroko thought suddenly. _Too many goddamn teeth._

“I started calling him Nigou, to avoid confusion.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Up Next: Tetsuya meets Tetsuya II. Hard choices ahead for him.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tetsuya meets Tetsuya II. Not everything is as it seems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: this is unedited.
> 
> I guess it’s better to explain now how the A/B/O dynamics work in Cry Wolf. Basically, it can be resumed to this:
> 
> Alphas fight, betas provide, and omegas rule.
> 
> (Because I’m tired of reading fic after fic where the omega is just a glorified breeding machine who is just so precious and must be coddled and handled with kid-gloves. In the beginning, it was good. Then it became repetitive.)
> 
> In Cry Wolf, werewolves are a different breed of humans separated in three sub-genders, each one as important as the other. In a pack, the ideal is to have at least one member of each gender, working together to ensure everyone’s survival. More on this will be expanded as the story goes on.

_**Last chapter:** _

_“Everyone, I would like you all to meet Teiko’s new addition. Nijimura Tetsuya. The second.” He paused, mouth curling up in his smile-turned-snarl._ Too many teeth _, Kuroko thought suddenly._ Too many goddamn teeth.

_“I started calling him Nigou, to avoid confusion.”_

* * *

 

Kuroko could count on one hand the number of times he had been struck speechless in his life. The first time had been when he realized that the handsome, athletic Aomine Daiki, the guy who saved his life, gave him flowers, played basketball with him, laughed with him... actually wanted to date him. The second was when he discovered that werewolves existed and that his boyfriend and his 'brothers' were not exactly humans. The third time... well. He didn't like thinking about the third time.

( _He looked uncomprehendingly at the sight before him, his overloaded mind trying to make sense of it. Why was he sitting on the floor? He had been standing in the kitchen, trying to explain his weeks-long absence to his best friend while leaning away from the counter and trying not to flinch at the smell of whatever Shigehiro was cooking. His friend was never what one would call a good cook or even a passable one, but whatever he was doing today had clearly gone spectacularly wrong somewhere._

_Speaking of Shige, why was he lying down on the floor? That couldn't be comfortable, could it? And he was covered in the red sauce too, the clumsy idiot. Knowing him, he probably didn't even notice..._

_Daiki was here. When had he arrived? Why was he covered in the sauce too? And why did he keep apologizing?_

_He was shaking him. Telling him to say something. Telling him he was sorry, Tetsu, so sorry. Daiki was begging him to say something. Anything._

_Tetsuya tried, but there was something stuck in his throat, choking him. His mouth felt full of ashes, and they tasted bitter. They tasted like regret, like overwhelming grief._

_Ashes that tasted of unimaginable rage.)_

... No. He doesn't think about the last time.

It takes a while before Kuroko notices that everyone is looking at him. Wanting to see how he will respond to this unexpected surprise, gauging his reaction. He opens his mouth to speak, thinks again, and finally chokes out an answer. Or rather, a question.

"... Excuse me?"

Akashi raises an eyebrow. Kuroko thinks that he can hate him. Hate that the alpha looks so in control, when, on the inside, the bluenette feels all twisted up.

"You didn't know? That's a surprise. Shuuzou normally would share everything with you... then again, he probably didn't want to involve you in his crime."

"Crime?" Kise piped in. "What do you mean by that, Akashicchi?"

The blonde's voice was able to disperse the fog that had invaded Kuroko's mind while he tried to think of the repercussions of this discovery.

"Apparently, Shuuzou met a woman in America. Their affair resulted in Nigou."

"So, Nijimura hooked up with someone and had a pup with a wolf outside the pack? That's hardly what one would call law-breaking," Aomine snorted, having resumed his position lazing about on the couch.

Akashi sent him a smile that made Aomine sit up properly. Again, too many teeth. "It is breaking the law when that someone is a human."

Kuroko barely spared a glance to the chaos that suddenly sprung in the room, too busy thinking. Tetsuya. The pup was named Tetsuya.

_Oh, Shuuzou,_ he thought despairingly, eyes tearing up. He could hear still hear the disbelieving shouts of the rest of the pack as they absorbed this new bit of information.  _Why did you have to go?_

_You left too soon, brother..._

"What do you mean human?!" That was Aomine.

"Exactly what you're thinking, Daiki."

"But, but!" he spluttered. "There are laws about that! The Council-!"

Murasakibara cut him off. "Mura-chin always had a thing for human women. Don't you remember the last one? That was a disaster. But you can't say much, Mine-chin, seeing as Kuro-chin was still human when the two of you started dating," he pointed out.

Kuroko grimaced at the reminder. If only he had known...

Well. That was just the question, wasn't it?

"But I was not an omega!" Aomine exploded, rounding on the taller werewolf. "I didn't have Heats to worry about! How did Nijimura deal with them without arousing the human's suspicion?!"

Murasakibara gave him a very droll look. "There are simple ways of avoiding a Heat. If an omega stays away from alphas when they feel themselves coming into Season, then it's easy enough to prevent one from coming. You know that."

Murasakibara was right. Avoiding falling into a Heat was easy if one knew when they would go into Season. But for other omegas like Kuroko, whose Seasons came and went unpredictably, some other measures had to be implemented to ensure they wouldn't go into an undesired Heat during difficult times. Measures that were more... harmful to the body. Kuroko never had to worry about that, at first because his Seasons, erratic though they could be, were eagerly awaited for and he practically luxuriated in the following Heat, whenever it arrived. Then, later (after murder and betrayal, after being broken down to the base and left to pick up the pieces of his heart), no matter if he was in Season or not, he didn't have to worry about triggering one, isolated as he was in the big city of Tokyo. Few wolves, especially alphas, ventured into the large metropolises, the loud noises, and pungent smells too much for their heightened senses.

But now that he was back in Teiko, within his territory and his pack and practically surrounded by familiar alphas, two of them that he had already mated before, it was almost a certainty he would enter his Season again, despite the fact he had just ended one less than four months ago.

His fist clenched and he began to sweat. He wondered where he would find Wolfsbane in Kyoto.

Luckily for him, no one seemed to notice the sudden spike of agitation in his scent, too busy in the discussion going on.

"Yeah, but that's if the alphas in question actually respect that distance! In here it would be simple. You, Tetsu and Nijimura would just say the word and me and the others would spend the week in the woods. But out there? What was there to stop some pumped-up alpha of taking advantage?"

"I believe Shuuzou himself. You forget, Daiki, that the omega must first approve of the prospective mate. Strength isn't enough. If Shuuzou's wolf didn't find the other worthy of him, then he would not allow himself to be mated."

"Doesn't mean he couldn't still be forced," Aomine continued stubbornly. "I've heard some things during my..." he searched for an adequate word. "Travels. Met some people. Things in the States are not as they used to be. Did you know that Nash Gold's dead?"

There was a pause as everyone digested the news. Kuroko never met the American werewolf, the man preferring to send his sons to represent the pack during the Council meetings rather than leave his territory himself in his old age, but he had heard he was a cunning but kind pack leader, who was still fierce when it came to the safety and well-being of his family. If half of what Kuroko had heard about him was true, then the werewolf community had suffered a big loss.

At the moment, however, he was more interested in the soft cry he could still hear above his head, everything inside his body telling him to follow the sound and see his namesake himself. Carefully, Kuroko angled his body towards the door that would lead him to the stairs. Around him, the conversation continued.

"I've heard rumors, but nothing concrete."

"Well, this is as concrete as it's going to get. Nash's dead and his alpha son, Gold Jr. is the new Leader of North America."

Akashi frowned, a flicker of what might be concern flashing through his unnerving face. He straightened his posture in the chair. "What about his omega twin? Nathan? Shouldn't he have followed in his father's footsteps?"

"Nathan's missing. People believe him dead and I don't think them are wrong. And we can all agree on who is the most likely to benefit from that," a significant look passed through Aomine's eyes. "There are no more omegas in North America's Pack."

"That is troubling, indeed," Akashi studied his interlaced fingers, his brilliant mind probably already thinking of all the possible ways they could overcome this new obstacle. Kuroko inched closer to the door. "Nevertheless, if I hadn't trusted in Shuuzou's own power, I would have never let him leave without an escort."

"And now he's dead," it was said bitterly, Aomine glaring at the flames on the fireplace.

"Aomine..." Midorima warned, eyes glancing from the tanned male to the redhead. He had moved away from them, putting distance between himself and a possible fight.

Akashi looked at Aomine like he was interesting new specimen to be studied. "You blame me for Shuuzou's death." It was not a question, that much was obvious.

The other alpha turned around, a snarl on his lips. "Of course I do! Who dispersed this pack in the first place?!"

"I ordered Ryouta to leave, that is true, and I do not regret that. I can see he learned his lesson well," Akashi spoke without sparing a look at Kise, who stiffened at the words and looked down at his clenched fists laying in his lap. Having sat next to him, Murasakibara's mouth thinned, his expression dark as he watched the bluenette and redhead. "The others, however, left by choice.  _You_ left of your own volition, Daiki."

Kuroko didn't have to see Aomine's face to know what he probably looked like. Devastated. Crushed. Haunted, like his voice when he whispered, "Tetsu left."

He didn't look back when he slipped away from the room.

 

* * *

 

It was easy to find the room where the pup had been placed; he didn't even need to rely on his ears or nose. Where else would Shuuzou's son be, but in Shuuzou's bedroom?

Someone had hastily attempted to convert the last room on the left side of the hallway into a nursery; he could see plastic bags full of baby supplies Murasakibara had probably bought at the closest town lying mostly unpacked on a bed pressed against the right wall. On the left, someone (probably Akashi) had mounted a changing table, together with a diaper pail. A rocking chair was positioned beneath the closed window, letting the shimmery moonlight filter through the half-open curtains and flood the room.

In the center, a simple bassinet had been placed.

The cries had stopped the moment Kuroko had stepped foot inside the room/nursery, and instead, he could hear a faint cooing sound, Dragging his feet, the omega walked until he stood above the cradle. He looked down and felt the air trapped in his lungs leave in a long exhale that sounded like a hiss.

The first thing Kuroko noticed was how tiny he was, smaller than what he thought normal for his age. Then he remembered he didn't know how old the baby was, and he couldn't even make a decent estimate since werewolf pups grew faster than human children, only slowing down to a more normal speed when they approached their teen years. Just one of the many reasons why pups were homeschooled until they could be enrolled in junior high. Still, Kuroko could still see traces of Nijimura when he looked down at the child. A head full of soft black hair, pale and smooth skin, a triangular face that would show a strong jaw and sharp cheekbones when it finally lost the baby fat... the only difference was the eyes. Instead of a gunmetal color, yellow eyes blinked up at him with childish curiosity. So, the pup was still young then, no more than seven weeks. It would take at least another one for the eye color to settle into something a little more human. Kuroko briefly wondered how Nijimura-senpai explained their baby's eyes to his human mate. A family condition, perhaps?

Tears were still drying on chubby cheeks, the red-faced toddler reaching up to him with grasping hands. Without thinking, Kuroko reached back, plucking him from the crib and cradling him to his chest.

When the baby's weight settled in his arms, it was like something had settled inside himself as well. His wolf, who had been sitting still inside the cage, cocked his head to the side, studying this new addition to their pack. His namesake remained silent as if he knew he was being observed. Blue eyes stared into bright yellow, and Tetsuya II cooed softly, fisting Kuroko's borrowed dress shirt with his tiny hands. The omega couldn't help the way his lips curled into a smile. He leaned down until his nose almost bumped on the pup's head, brushing strands of raven hair away.

And yes, there, right there, under the smell of milk and puphood-

Spring flowers. Tetsuya II smelled like spring flowers.

_Just like Shuuzou._

Kuroko never thought he would get to smell that again.

Tears pricked his eyes, but he held them back. He couldn't let the baby see him cry; already the pup could tell he was feeling sad by the way he babbled away in baby speak, trying to reach up and pat Kuroko's cheek as if in solidarity. If he couldn't control himself he would end up distressing Nigou.

Tetsuya II. Nigou. Tetsuya Nº 2.  _You really did keep our promise, didn't you, Shuuzou?_

It was a thought so ridiculously depressing that Kuroko let out a watery laugh. The sound clearly delighted his little burden, who clapped his hands and babbled some more.

"I see you've already met Nigou, Tetsuya."

Kuroko tensed, arms tightening around the pup. He turned his head back, not surprised to see Akashi leaning on the doorway, Midorima, Aomine, and Kise waiting respectfully behind him, even as they craned their necks to take a peek inside the room. None of them would dare enter without an omega's permission though; this was not their dominion, their expertise. This was omega territory. Nijimura's and Murasakibara's.

Kuroko's.

In here, an omega's authority was supreme. And even Akashi at his most imperious would defer to him.

"Where is Murasakibara-kun?" he asked, serene in the knowledge that in this, at least, not even Japan's Pack Leader could overpower him.

"In the kitchen, heating some milk."

"Good." He looked at the alphas gathered at the door, all of them trying to inconspicuously look at the bundle of cuteness in his arms. He sighed. It would be cruel to deny them...

A long-suffering sigh left him mouth. He would probably regret this.

"You may come in."

It was like a starting gun had gone off in a race. Kise and Aomine rushed into the room at the same time, only to crash into each other and fall into a heap on the floor. Midorima, taking advantage of their condition, jumped over their wrestling bodies to be the first to reach Kuroko, only for Aomine to snag his ankle mid-air and drag him down too. Meanwhile, Kise managed to crawl away from underneath the bluenette and tried to run again, only to trip on Akashi's conveniently-placed foot.

The red-haired alpha strolled towards the omega and pup, taking care to step on Aomine's clawing hand and nudge away Midorima's fallen glasses, with not a hair out of place, and leaving behind a pile of moaning bodies.

Kuroko just sighed. "As expected of Akashi-kun."

The smile on the alpha's face was enough to make angels weep, and not in a good way. "Why, Tetsuya, I have no idea what you are talking about. Hearing you say it, it's almost like I planned that."

He wouldn't be surprised if the other had. He gave him a look to showcase this thought.

"May I?" Akashi gestured towards Nigou. "Atsushi hasn't allowed me to come too close since we first found him; I'm hoping now you've arrived, he will be more lenient."

It didn't surprise Kuroko that Murasakibara hadn't let Akashi come near the pup. As a unmated and childless alpha, even one that led their pack, Akashi proved more of a risk than others, precisely because of his position of power. Were Akashi to find Nigou lacking in any aspect and reject him, life for the pup could become very difficult, even if the omegas decided to nurse him.

Reluctantly and with a healthy dose of caution, Kuroko maneuvered Tetsuya II in his arms until the pup was facing the redhead. Akashi leaned forwards, sniffing delicately. Kuroko knew the instant the alpha detected the scent of spring flowers; his shoulders stiffened, and his eyes closed in remembrance.

They stood still that way, alpha and omega, with a pup between them, for what felt like hours. Even the other occupants in the room, now disentangled and joined by Murasakibara holding a baby bottle, had ceased bickering and stood silent, watching the event unfold in front of them.

Akashi lifted a hand and Kuroko had to fight against the instinct urging him to shield the (his?) pup. They watched Nigou grasp one finger, avoiding the sharp black nail that could slice his soft skin into ribbons, and coo. Akashi smiled again, but this time it was soft and sad, with only a hint of tooth. Real. It transformed his whole face, making him appear less like a beast and more like a man.

"Hello there," he murmured in a soft growl, tugging at the tiny hand wrapped around his digit. "That's a strong grip you have. You will be as strong as your papa was, I can tell."

Nigou laughed and blew him a raspberry. Kuroko could hear Aomine's surprised laughter from behind Akashi. The latter was unperturbed though, only using his other hand to wave at the group behind him, or, more specifically, at the still chuckling alpha. "And that, Nigou, is what we call an Imbecile. You will not grow up to be like him."

Ignoring the affronted "Hey! Don't poison the pup against me Akashi!", the pack leader placed his mouth on the baby's brow, giving him a brief kiss.

"Welcome to Teiko, little one. Welcome home."

But Akashi wasn't looking at Nigou as he said those words. No, his wolf eyes were fixed on Kuroko as he pressed his lips to the pup's forehead, clawed hand now petting the pup (and purposely brushing Kuroko's own arm) in a proprietary gesture.

Home indeed.

So why did it feel more like a gilded cage?

 

* * *

 

After Murasakibara finished feeding Nigou and the other alphas had their fill of sniffing and making silly faces at the baby, Kuroko put him back in the bassinet, taking care to cover all of his body with the blanket. There was a round of goodnights as everyone left the nursery, most of them heading to their own rooms to unpack any luggage and prepare for bed.

Looking down one last time at the dozing toddler, Kuroko brushed away a curl of black hair, placing his own goodnight kiss before leaving, shutting the door gently in his way. It was immensely satisfying, to him and his wolf both, to care for a pup of the pack. Their pup.

Kuroko paused on his way down the stairs, shaking his head before continuing. He couldn't think like that. Dangerous thoughts like those were the first step on a long road he wasn't sure he could survive from again. He had to remember why he was here. For a funeral, and nothing else. No matter how much he had already come to love little Nigou, he couldn't stay. He had a promise to keep.

_(Ruby red eyes and a wide, excited grin. A large hand messing his hair and the smell of burgers coming from the kitchen._

_A warm body to share the bed and chase away his nightmares._

_I promise I will come back to you)_

After the funeral, Kuroko would be back on a train to Tokyo faster than one could say 'my condolences'. He wondered if the others would revert back to calling Nigou by his proper name. With him gone, there would be no worries about confusion, right?

"Deep thoughts?"

Until then though, he would be subjected to having his privacy interrupted over and over again.

"Why should Aomine-san care?"

Said alpha narrowed his eyes at the chilly tone.

"I always care about what you think Tetsu."

"Do you?" he questioned lightly, heading towards the mini-bar found on the mansion's main sitting room. "Funny. I don't remember."

Kuroko reasoned that if he had to spend the night talking to Aomine, then at least he could do so with some alcohol in hand. As a werewolf, their high metabolism made it difficult for them to get drunk, but perhaps it was better not to risk it. Alcohol and Aomine were never a good combination. He would know. So instead of taking the tempting bottle of vodka innocently sitting on the polished wood counter that called to him like a siren song, Kuroko unearthed a water bottle with a fancy brand he didn't recognize, taking generous sips from it.

Aomine, the shameless wolf that he is, took two tumblers and the vodka. Kuroko stopped himself from growling at him.

"Are you thinking about your human lover?"

There was no jealousy present in his voice. In fact, it was calm, even, maybe a little curious. But they've known each other for the better part of a decade. Kuroko saw the way his grip tightened on the bottle as he poured a glass for himself, how his eyes darkened. They didn't change to a yellow color, but Kuroko could still see the emotion swirling inside the midnight blue orbs. When Aomine tried to fill the second cup with the vodka, Kuroko shook his head and saw the way the alpha's jaw tightened.

"He's not my lover, not that that is any of Aomine-san's business."

Aomine gulped down the whole shot. "But you want him."

Kuroko glared at the mouth of his water bottle. "Again, not your business."

"How long have you known each other?" He poured himself another glass. Downed it. Filled it again.

"A year, give or take a few weeks."

"So, the whole time you've been away from home." Cue that muscle in his jaw jumping in anger. Aomine's fingers were tight around the tumbler when he lifted it to his mouth again. "It didn't take long for you to replace Kise and I, huh?"

For a moment, Kuroko considered the pros and cons of throwing the plastic bottle at the other man's head. He figured it would be a waste, and took another drink instead, Aomine following his example with the vodka. When he realized that he had finished it, he set it aside and stretched his body over the counter to fish another one from the shelf behind the omega.

"Is he at least handsome?" he asked, after finishing opening the new bottle and taking a sip right from the mouth.

"Yes." Kuroko's answer was curt and to the point, inviting no more questions.

Of course, Aomine wouldn't be Aomine if he could take the hint.

"What does he look like?"

If Kuroko had a mirror, he was sure his usually blank expression would be screaming  _Are you serious?_ "Why would I ever tell you that? So that you can hunt him down and kill him?"

_It wouldn't be the first time,_ he thinks darkly.

"Just want to know what this human has that I don't."

"Do you want the list alphabetically or in chronological order?"

_Compassion. Consideration. Decency. Diligence._ _Honesty. Humility. Integrity. Kindness._

_Humanity._

"Just one reason, Tetsu. Come on, give me something to work with."

"How about a smaller head?"

"My head is perfectly proportioned to the rest of my body, thank you very much. A very fine body, mind you."

And wasn't that God's truth. If Kuroko closed his eyes, he could still remember all the dark, hard planes of Aomine's pecs, the defined perfection of his torso; the long lean muscles of his legs and the big, thick-

Kuroko blinked. He looked down at the bottle with the unrecognizable brand in his hands. What _was_ in this water?

A growl sounded behind him. "Damnit Tetsu. Won't you even look at me?"

After that? No, thank you. It was time for bed.

(... not like that. Bad choice of words.)

"It's late. Tomorrow, we have a funeral to attend. Better go catch up on your sleep, Aomine-san."

He tried to sleep past the alpha using his misdirection, but it was Aomine; if anyone knew how to keep track of him even better than Kise or Akashi, it was him. Quick as a snake, he grasped Kuroko's arm, dragging him closer until he was flush against the alpha's chest, feeling the heat all but radiating from the furnace called Aomine Daiki.

Kuroko didn't try to shake him off, knowing it was futile. Still, he didn't appreciate being touched. "Let go, Aomine-san."

"Aomine-san, Aomine-san," he mocked. "What happened to Aomine-kun? What happened to Daiki? Did we really became so estranged you won't even call me by my name, Tetsu?"

"Once again, let me go."

The omega could feel warm breath on his ear as Aomine leaned down to whisper, "I saw how you were with the pup; I saw the way you smiled at him. It was beautiful Tetsu. So fucking beautiful. Tell me that Nigou doesn't change anything. Tell me that you won't stay here for the pup. Tell me you didn't miss this. Me," he sounded gutted as if every word caused him pain. "Tell me you don't want me anymore, and I will let go."

Slowly, Kuroko relaxed in his hold. He turned his head around, lips brushing against Aomine's jaw, almost touching his mouth. A little pink tongue flickered out to briefly taste skin. Enthralled, the alpha angled his face until there was only a breadth of space between their mouths, the two of them sharing breaths. Pupils dilated, the darker bluenette watched avidly as Tetsuya brought up a hand to caress his cheek.

"Aomine-kun," the omega breathed out.

"Tetsu," he answered back immediately, expecting any moment now the kiss he has been yearning for a whole year.

He should have known better.

"I wouldn't want Aomine-kun back in my bed even if the fate of the world depended on it."

Shock stole across the alpha's face as his brain processed what he had heard. Kuroko patted his cheek and escaped from the hold on his arm, the grip having grown slack in response to the surprising turn of events.

"Goodnight, Aomine-san. Don't let the bedbugs bite."

 

* * *

 

_Ring. Ring. Rin-_

_"Hello?"_

"Hello, Kagami-kun."

_"Kuroko!"_ He could hear Taiga's excitement pouring out of the phone. " _You called!"_

He chuckled. "Of course I did. I told you I would, didn't I?"

_"Well, yeah, but I wasn't expecting a call until tomorrow morning, at the earliest. I thought that you would be tired from the long journey, and then seeing the family again... you sure you're not too tired? If you are, you should be in bed sleeping, idiot."_

And that was Kagami in a nutshell. Blunt, rude, but always more worried about others than himself. Kuroko didn't try to fight the smile appearing on his face, before growing serious again. "I am more worried about Kagami-kun. At least I have a bed. What about you? Have you found a place to stay?"

" _Heh, don't worry about me. I'm crashing at Tatsuya's place. Remember my brother? I introduced you two during the birthday party the fire station threw a few months ago..."_

"Yes, I remember Himuro-san. Please, tell him my thanks for taking you in, and that I'm sorry he will have to feed the bottomless pit you call your stomach."

" _Hey! That was uncalled for!"_ the other huffed from the other line. " _I will let you know Tatsuya's ecstatic I'm here since he will be able to enjoy my cooking."_

Kuroko nodded sagely. "You're right. Himuro-san definitely got the better part of the bargain."

_"In all seriousness though, I've already searched for a few apartments, and there's one that's pretty close to the station I work for... but I've found another five blocks away that is right next to a daycare. I've been asking around, and they need another teacher. And guess what, there's also a basketball court nearby! We could go play on the weekends, I know you've missed playing as much as I did. What do you think? I'm afraid the court is maybe a little shabby, and the pay at the daycare is definitely less than what you earned in your last job, but I'm sure we can work things out! But if you're still not sold, I can keep searching for a better place, I can do it! There's one near a park, I know how much you like your night jogs even though I keep telling you it's safer to go to an academy for that-"_

"Kagami-kun, you're rambling."

The torrent of words stopped abruptly. He heard a throat clearing.

_"Sorry. I guess I got a little ahead of myself there... You must be mad, huh?"_

Mad? Kuroko was in love with this big, basketball idiot. His brave firefighter who would choose walking five blocks every day just so Kuroko wouldn't have to. Just so Kuroko could keep on doing the thing he loved.

"Kagami-kun, please, find out more about the apartment close to the station. If it's within our budget, I'm sure we can move there before week's end."

There was a sharp intake of breath. " _So, you're returning soon?"_ he sounded hopeful.

Determined, Kuroko nodded, even though he knew Kagami couldn't see him. "Tomorrow is the funeral. I plan to leave soon after that." Maybe he would spend an extra day to make sure Nigou would be properly cared for, but when that was done...

There was no reason, not one, for him to stay any longer than that. Whatever other problems may surface, like the identity of Nijimura's killer, it would be Teiko business, and Kuroko was not Teiko anymore.

He was Kuroko Tetsuya, soon-to-be a daycare worker in Tokyo. Kuroko Tetsuya, human. Kuroko Tetsuya, Kagami Taiga's housemate, and best friend.

In time, maybe... more?

He was eager to find out.

" _Then, you finish your business in there and I will handle things on this side. By the time you get back, I will be showing you our new home."_

Home. When Kagami said it, it sounded so much better than when it fell from Akashi's mouth.

"I will hold you to that, Kagami-kun."

They talked a little more before Kagami noticed Kuroko trying to muffle his yawns. After enduring a lecture about taking more care of himself, Kuroko was all but ordered to go to bed and sleep. He gladly discarded the borrowed clothes and changed into his comfortable nightwear, leaving his cell phone to charge through the night. It was just when he turned that he noticed the shadow looming over his open door.

"Kagami... Is that the name of Kuro-chin's human boyfriend?"

Kuroko opened his mouth to deny him and Kagami being boyfriends, but gave up. Aomine and Kise were already convinced they were fucking, and nothing he said could change their minds, so why keep trying?

"What are you doing here, Murasakibara-kun?" he decided to ask instead and watched a frown appear on the giant's face.

"Now that Kuro-chin's back, I wanted to know if he wanted to cuddle like we did before..." The frown deepened. "But then I heard Kuro-chin talking with his human boyfriend. Are you planning to leave? You've only just got here."

Murasakibara didn't sound sad. He sounded angry. And an angry Murasakibara was much more dangerous than a despondent one. Kuroko would have to navigate this carefully.

"Murasakibara-kun, you know that I've only returned to attend Nijimura-senpai's funeral. I have built a life for myself back in Tokyo. A life I'm eager to return to."

The purple-haired werewolf fisted his hands at his side. Not a good sign, in Kuroko's expertise. "What about the life you have here?"

Kuroko looked back at him calmly. "I thought I was clear the last time I was in this house. I am no longer a part of the Teiko Pack. Whatever life I had here, it's over."

The other omega gave him a resentful glare. "You won't stay, not even for Nigou?"

A pang in his heart. The thought of bright wolf eyes and an even brighter smile. The sweet smell of milk and puphood and spring flowers.

His Wolf, that had been so silent up until now, content to bask in the proximity of its long-lost pack, pounced on the thought.  _Would it be so bad?_ it asked, lying down on its cage, the very picture of submission when they both knew it was far from it.  _The pup needs us. Brother's pup, named after us. We could nurse it. Raise it. Teach all it needs to survive. We have always wanted pups..._

Kuroko thought about it.

(Little boys and girls with the sky in their heads, the sun reflecting in their eyes as they ran across the field of their ancestral home. Big smiles showing tiny, adorable fangs that would length into sharp canines and tear into a human’s throat-)

_Teach how to kill, you mean._

He shook his head. "I'm sure you and the others will take good care of Nigou. He will be in good hands."

Murasakibara shook his head so violently his hair wiped around. "Aka-chin only accepted Nigou because Kuro-chin did. Why do you think I didn't let him come near until you had arrived and seen the pup yourself? Do you really think Aka-chin would have let a Mixed become part of the pack, even if he was Mura-chin's child?"

Kuroko gaped at him, disbelieving. "I- Of course! You said it yourself! It's Nijimura-senpai's child. His only child! Akashi-kun respected Nijimura-senpai above everyone else!"

If possible, the frown on Murasakibara's face darkened. "Aka-chin changed. Can't you feel it? He's more wolf now than ever. More dangerous."

Now that Atsushi said it, Kuroko _had_ noticed something different in the Teiko leader. He had seemed a little more wild... more unhinged.

But surely not enough to cast out the offspring of a deceased packmate?

"Kuro-chin doesn't listen," the other omega shook his head, looking more frustrated than Kuroko had ever seen him. "He doesn't see."

Mouth dry and with every alarm bell ringing inside his mind, Kuroko asked, "See what?"

"Things are different. Everyone is different. The past year... hasn't been good at all. Mura-chin is dead. Mido-chin is more aloof than ever. Mine-chin more savage and Kise-chin isn't being the usual Silly-Kise-chin. He's Serious-Kise-chin now. And Aka-chin... he has that look on his eyes again."

Murasakibara shuddered and Kuroko didn't press for details. They both knew what look Atsushi had been talking about.

"What about you, Murasakibara-kun? How have you changed?"

 It took a long time for him to answer. When he finally did, his voice sounded muffled, as if coming from underwater.

"I'm scared. I've never been scared before. Never had reason to. I've always been with the pack."

"You are with the pack now," he pointed out gently.

"Am I?" Atsushi looked at him as if he couldn't recognize him, and Kuroko abruptly wondered how much he had changed too, over the past year.

"It doesn't feel like it, Kuro-chin. It doesn't feel like it at all."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cry Wolf Universe Glossary:
> 
> Wolfsbane - a.k.a aconite and monkshood, it's a potent, purple-colored herb that, much like silver, is poisonous to werewolves, though betas are affected less. In measured doses, it can cause anything from discomfort to a mild fever. Undiluted and in big quantity, however, it's able to kill a fully grown werewolf. It can also be used to avoid Heats or terminate unwanted pregnancies, though the risk to the werewolf's body is great.
> 
> Season - comes one or two times a year, a period of time that usually lasts a week, in which an omega is ovulating. They become more aggressive when in Season, seeking out multiple alphas and having them fight each other to determine who's the strongest, or fighting them themselves. If an omega finds a desirable match (or matches, as it can happen sometimes) and the alpha(s) has proven themselves an adequate suitor, the omega will proceed to go in heat and allow mating. If the alpha fails to meet the expectations, or there are no alphas around, the Season will pass with no Heats, and the omega will have to wait for another opportunity next year. 
> 
> Heat - a two/three days long period where an omega who has found a worthy alpha spends most of the time attempting impregnation. During those days, all the omega's needs are taken care of by their mating partner, and when the Heat has run its course, the omega decides if they would like to continue mating the alpha, whether the impregnation was successful or not. It can also be that an omega may choose more than one partner to keep them company during a heat, not only to increase chances of pregnancy but also add another layer of safety, seeing as there will be an extra pair of claws and fangs to ward off intruders while the omega is otherwise engaged.
> 
> Mutt - a derogatory name among the werewolf community for bitten werewolves, werewolves who were formerly human. They are, in their majority, the weakest of the species, having a hard time to control their Changes and beasts. However, there are notable exceptions to the rule (i.e, Aomine Daiki, Nijimura Shuuzou, Kuroko Tetsuya...)
> 
> Mixed - a term commonly used to describe werewolves born in human form, those who have at least one human parent. (i.e, Nijimura Tetsuya)
> 
> Purebred - a term used to describe wolves whose pure lineage can be traced at least four generations back. They are considered the strongest of the species, born in their wolf skin rather than the human one, though their numbers are dwindling. As of now, only six families in Japan can truly boast of such a title (the Akashi, Murasakibara, and Haizaki Clans of Teiko, located in Kyoto, and the Yamamotos and Sasagawas of Namimori).
> 
> Moon Council - a council made up of three Elders, each one of a different dynamic (alpha, beta, and omega), who are responsible for organizing the rites and festivities according to the moon calendar, appointing the Ruling Pack of each country, keep the peace with Hunters, record of the population statistics and passing judgment on those that go against the Pact.
> 
> Hunters - a different breed of humans gifted with longevity, superhuman reflexes, strength, and speed capable of matching that of a Purebred, their job is to hunt down rogue werewolves who have lost control of their beasts or that have become addicted to the taste of human flesh (or just liked killing in general). It is speculated among the scholars that Werewolves and Hunters share the same ancestors, though nothing can be confirmed and both kinds repudiate the theory.
> 
> The Blood Moon Pact - signed on the day of the first full moon in October in 17XX, this Pact was agreed upon by Nathaniel Gold, the Omega Elder at the time, representing all the Werewolves, and Touka Kiyoshi, Fist Huntress of the Order of Orion, representing all the Hunters. The Pact stated that there would be peace among their species, with the Werewolves forbidden from feeding and killing humans, and the Order of Orion forbidden from hunting their numbers indiscriminately, only allowed to exercise their strength when the statute of secrecy or human lives were at risk.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dream, a promise, a goodbye. The Teiko Pack buries one of their own, and Kuroko's resolve to go back to Kagami is tested.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the long wait, but here it is, finally (Thank God). It has been a hard few months. It's gonna get harder *cries*
> 
> This chapter is unedited. There is also mentions of suicidal thoughts and a moment where a character experiences a panic attack, so if any of that is a trigger for you, you might want to skip the first and last parts.

_The sky was clear, the sun was shining, the birds were singing..._

_And Kise's pretty face had just been slammed into the ground._

_Kuroko winced at the sight, feeling his own phantom aches throb sympathetically, the quickly fading bruises courtesy of the man sitting next to him under the shade of a tree._

_Nijimura Shuuzou, his combat instructor and fellow omega, chuckled at the brawl that had broken out between Kise and their other packmate, fondness clear in his eyes as he watched the younger wolves 'playing' around._

_"Shouldn't you stop them, Nijimura-san?" Kuroko asked hesitantly, frowning when Kise's opponent caught him in a headlock and began jeering, already crooning about his victory before a brutal elbow to his gut made him swallow his tongue._

_"What, and deny us the entertainment?" Nijimura waved a negligent hand. "There's no need, Kuroko. Besides, this is a healthy way for those two to interact."_

_Kuroko raised a dubious eyebrow. Call him crazy, but he didn't see the health benefits one could get out of a punch to the face or a kick in the shins._

_The older omega must have read those thoughts on his otherwise blank face, for he hurried to reassure him. "Believe me, those two are cousins. They have never seen eye-to-eye on anything since they were pups and that's not about to change. It's better that they get their aggressions on each other out this way when it's somewhat controlled, rather than let it mount until later when one of them snaps."_

_Kuroko nodded hesitantly, still not quite sold on the idea. Then again, maybe it was normal behavior for werewolf cousins to regularly beat the crap out of each other. He wouldn't know, having been one for less than a year, most of which he had spent either in denial or attempting to escape._

_But those were dark thoughts, so Kuroko tried his best to push them away. He had finally come to accept that there was no escape from this new reality after Aomine had tracked his sorry self down to a ditch in the middle of nowhere and carried him back to Rakuzan._

_Since then, he had been learning what it means to be a wolf, of being part of a pack. And he had discovered, to his surprise, that it wasn't all that bad._

_Oh, the Change still terrified him, his new senses sometimes overwhelmed him to the point he just wanted to curl up on the floor and die, and there was now a hungry, primal thing pacing inside of him that yearned to feel flesh and bone crunch under the weight of his fangs._

_But the beast wasn't all about violence and death, as Kuroko had feared, as it had seemed to be during those long, lonely first months after he was bitten._

_There was nothing better, nothing at all, than to wake up in the morning in a big pile of warm bodies, or sitting down to eat breakfast and fighting to see which one would get that last strip of bacon. Nothing could top the exhilarant feeling of running through the forest on all fours, throwing back his head to howl and know that someone would answer, that he had a pack, a family..._

_That he was not alone in this world anymore._

And also _, Kuroko thought with a faint blush,_ there are the Heats _._

_Admittedly, they had horrified him when Nijimura first explained, as thoroughly as possible, what being an omega entailed._

_"What do you mean I can get **pregnant**?!"_

_For one second that seemed to last a lifetime, Kuroko imagined himself as some sort of bizarre sex-starved nymphomaniac, a slave to his body's need, destined to become the breeding bitch of the first alpha who crossed his path and got a good whiff of his scent._

_Nijimura had been quick to correct his misconceptions._

_As it turned out, omegas were actually the ones to hold all the power, especially when it came to matters such as reproduction. Not only were they essential to a pack's - and, in fact, all of werewolf-kind - survival, they also were normally the ones to lead the group._

_(Teiko's last leader had been an omega, Akashi's mother, adored and dearly missed by all those that knew her. The few stories Kuroko could entice out of his packmates all described her as a wise and just leader, maybe not the strongest, but certainly the fiercest, especially when it came to the protection of her family.)_

_When in Season, omegas had their pick of alphas, and if none appealed to him or her, then that was that. Rape was rare in the wolf community._

_Omegas were seen as leaders, mothers, guides, healers... and, for being so few, were honored and coveted beyond every other dynamic. Teiko was particularly blessed in that sense, seeing as it never lacked for omegas._

_But what stuck Kuroko the most was the possibility of pregnancy. He had always wanted children of his own but gave up on that dream long ago when he realized his eyes would always linger on muscles and hard lines instead of a woman's gentle curves and soft voice. He admired their delicate beauty, but he wasn't_ attracted _to it._

_But now, apparently, he had a womb. Granted, it would only form when he was about to enter his Heat (which also sounded very alarming and painful), and he never imagined in his wildest dreams that he would ever feel the pain of labor, but the thought wouldn't leave him alone now that he knew it was a possibility._

_Thoughts about a dark-skinned babe with his pale hair and eyes dogged his mind for weeks after that conversation._

_Even now, it haunted him, as he watched Aomine stalk from outside the forest, wearing only basketball shorts and heading straight to the fight going on the backyard, where Kise was being forced to eat dirt yet again by his cousin._

_"I would wipe that look out of your face if I were you. If Aomine sees it, it's probable that he will pop a boner right there in the middle of that tussle. I can assure you that his opponents will not appreciate it."_

_Kuroko almost asked which one of his opponents wouldn't appreciate it (he was fairly sure a certain blond might) but thought better of it when he saw the amused look on Shuuzou's face._

_"Have you ever thought about it?" he blurted out instead, and almost swallowed his tongue trying to take the words back. Was that too personal? Did he break some unspoken rule by asking? Breached werewolf etiquette?_

_"About what?"_

_Well, he had come this far. Might as well go all the way._

_"About having children. Getting... pregnant."_

_Nijimura fell silent and Kuroko was about to open his mouth to say he was sorry for asking when the other man answered._

_"I was in love once, you know."_

_The tealette frowned at the non-sequitur._

_"She was a nasty piece of work," Nijimura chuckled. "The spoiled princess type, with rich parents coming from old money. They lived in a honest-to-goodness castle. I was less than a pauper compared to her and sometimes it seemed we spent more time fighting than anything else. But I loved her and I never doubted her love to me. She chose me in the end when her father told her it was either me or the family."_

_"What happened?" Kuroko asked softly._

_"This happened," he pulled down the collar of his shirt, showing the white bite mark that marred his shoulder. It was a familiar sight to Kuroko; he had one himself on his forearm._

_"I went through exactly what you did. It was worse, even, 'cause the man who bit me didn't bother to stick around and explain. I had no idea what was happening. What I had... become. I was angry all the time, hungry and itching, like something was trying to claw their way out from under my skin. Everything was too loud, too bright, too much."_

_Nijimura's eyes adopted a far-away look as he recounted the days leading up to the end of a life and the beginning of another._

_"The situation in our home was becoming unsustainable. It all came to a head when, in my first full moon night, in the middle of another row, I blacked out. I woke up three days later in a ravine, naked and covered in blood."_

_Kuroko sucked in a breath. "You..."_

_He nodded. "I stole clothes and found a tabloid. Right there, on the cover page, was a photo of our house. The headlines screamed: 'ANIMAL ATTACK ENDS IN DEATH ON XXX STREET'."_

_Silence fell between the two omegas. Kuroko, pale-faced, bitterly regretted ever bringing it up._

_"She was the first person I ever loved. I saving up to buy a ring. We were going to get married. We were going to have kids... I didn't read the rest. I didn't go back. I just left. I buried the thought of love and of a family and began planning to throw myself off the first bridge I could find."_

_Some life seemed to go back to Shuuzou's eyes._

_"That was when I met Haizaki. The stubborn little shit had been sent to investigate a Mutt attack and take care of it, but in the end wouldn't kill me, let alone let me kill myself. He dragged me kicking and screaming to Rakuzan and introduced to the Teiko Pack. And so, here I am. Mateless, childless... But not alone. Not anymore. To finally answer your question Kuroko... Yes. I do think about it sometimes... very briefly... But I don't think that that's in my future. I don't think I will ever find anyone to share the gift of parenthood with."_

_He didn't say it, but Kuroko heard it loud and clear._

I don't think I will ever love someone else as much as I loved her.

_"I'm sorry I asked, senpai."_

_"Don't be sorry. You had no idea. That's not a story I usually share with others. Most of the pack doesn't know. Only Masaomi-san, Akashi and Haizaki do. And now you, I guess."_

_Suddenly, a wicked look appeared on Nijimura's face. Kuroko had a deep sense of foreboding._

_"Besides," he leered at him. "I don't need to worry about pups when you and Daiki seem more than eager to pick up the slack."_

_The blush that spread across Kuroko's cheeks was red and hot, burning all the way to the tips of his ears. The smirk on Nijimura's face widened._

_"You're going to name one of your pups after me," he told him, cool as you please._

_"And why would I do that?" Kuroko asked, crossing his arms and trying to will the blush away._

_In a pompous voice, Nijimura replied: "'Cause I'm gonna be the godfather, of course."_

_"Not with that attitude, you're not."_

_"What about a bet? The first one to have a pup will name him after the other."_

_"But you just said you don't plan on having children..."_

_"That's why I'm confident there will be a little Shuuzou running around in no time."_

_"A bit_ over _confident aren't you? Besides, what if we have girls?"_

_"Then you can name her Shuuko. If by some bizarre twist of fate, you end up winning the bet, I will name the kid Tetsuya either way. Isn't it a girl's name?"_

_Kuroko sent him an annoyed glare. "No. It isn't."_

_Nijimura laughed out loud, head back against the bark of the tree, and, after another second of mutinous silence, Kuroko joined him. Their laughter attracted the attention of the alphas still in the backyard locked in a three-way brawl, and Haizaki's voice carried to where they were._

_"What are those two shits laughing about?"_

_The omegas howled louder._

 

* * *

 

Kuroko woke up in the morning of his third and last day in Rakuzan with a terrible headache.

Normally, he would only feel this way after a particularly rough full moon night. He had become intimately more acquaintanced with those splinting headaches for the past year since leaving Teiko. The best way to deal with them was to pretend they didn't exist. So that was exactly what Kuroko did. He climbed out of the bed and went on performing his daily routine, checking to see if Nigou was awake. By the lack of crying, the omega was fairly sure the pup was still sleeping.

He was just finishing combing his wild bed hair back in order when there was a knock on his door.

"Enter."

The knob turned and Kuroko wasn't surprised to see Midorima standing in the doorway, a solemn look in his eyes.

"It's time," he said quietly.

Kuroko nodded, putting the bush back on his room's vanity. They had spent the whole of yesterday making the necessary preparations for the funeral. Now it was time to finally say goodbye.

"Are you going to get Nigou?" Midorima asked, following closely behind him as they walked down the hallway.

Kuroko shook his head. "Let him sleep. He's too young to understand anyway."

Too young to realize he's now an orphan.

Midorima nodded, saying nothing more. Together, the two werewolves met with the rest of their pack at the foyer, all of them sporting grim faces and dead eyes. Akashi was the one holding the urn containing Nijimura's ashes.

It was a simple thing, with no excessive decoration. Just a deep shade of blue, almost navy, with a silver crescent moon painted on it. Kuroko thought Nijimura would have liked it.

Before they stepped outside, the alpha offered it to him.

Kuroko looked at it and then at him blankly. "But you knew him longer."

"I did," Akashi nodded. "But you were closer."

In the end, he accepted the urn. He thought it would be heavy, but no, it was deceptively light, despite his brother's ashes being inside it.

It was a somber procession that made their way to the boundary between the forest and the manor's backyard. As they walked, Kuroko looked up. The sky was still mostly dark, only a hint of light beginning to come up from the east. He breathed in the morning dew deeply, catching the hint of upcoming rain.

Fitting.

Inside the cage, his Wolf was subdued, ears pinned back and tail dropped. It sniffed at the air, despondent, trying in vain to catch that familiar scent of spring flowers...

And getting only ashes instead.

 _Gone_ , the Wolf cried. _Brother is gone._

Kuroko stopped once he breached the treeline, Rakuzan still visible and imposing behind him. Around him, the remains of the Teiko Pack formed a loose half-circle, all of them looking intently at the urn on his hands.

It was customary among werewolves to bury their fallen. They were a bit too human to simply leave their dead where they fell, like their animal brethren. They are taught from puphood that the earth gave them everything, and so they would give it back once their bodies were buried, nurturing the soil that once provided for them.

But Nijimura had been born human, and he had long ago made clear how he wanted to go.

Kuroko opened the urn and let the breeze spread his brother's ashes across the pack lands.

"May your spirit always run with the pack, brother," he whispered, watching the ashes slip through his fingers and being carried by the wind deeper into the forest.

"May your hunt never end," the others echoed, solemn.

_Goodbye, Shuuzou._

As one, the Teiko Pack threw back their heads and filled the air with their mournful song.

 

* * *

 

By the time they went back inside, the sun had already fully breached the horizon and a slight drizzle had begun to fall. Kuroko could hear Nigou waking up.

He and Murasakibara excused themselves to see to the pup. While the taller omega warmed up some milk, Kuroko entered Niji- no, the room. It wasn't Shuuzou's anymore.

He wondered when were they going to move Nigou to Rakuzan's nursery room, where all the pack's pups slept in when they first changed into their human skin. Now that the leader had officially accepted Nigou as one of them, there was no reason to keep him in here.

The pup was awake and fussing, yellow eyes trying to focus on Kuroko's face as the man stood over the crib. He let out a happy growl when the omega let his fingers brush lightly over his tummy.

"You're going to be fine," he told the babe. "Murasakibara-kun will take care of you."

The pup sent him a reproachful look as if understanding the meaning behind his words and condemning him for it.

_I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry._

Once Murasakibara appeared, they fed Nigou, changed him, and put him back in the bassinet for a nap. The two omegas then walked down the stairs to the main living room.

The others were already waiting, seated along a table with Akashi at the head. At his left, Midorima sat, an empty chair between him and Aomine that Murasakibara quickly occupied. On Akashi's right, Kise sat forlornly, another empty chair between him and the redheaded alpha. There was no other chair, and a part of Kuroko wanted to rage.

Nijimura should be the one sitting on Akashi's right.

Taking a deep breath, Kuroko sat on the remaining chair, knowing that the meeting wouldn't begin until he joined them at the table. And they had much to discuss before Kuroko packed up his things and left.

(He ignored his Wolf's growl at that last thought)

"Now that we are all here," Akashi sent him a cool smile. "We may begin."

At once, Midorima spoke. "We must send a missive to the Moon Council, and another to the Order. We have to get all the facts straight before jumping into war."

Aomine, predictably, snorted. "We already have all the facts. The murder weapon makes it obvious who the guilty party is, and as for motive, well," he bared his teeth in a parody of a smile. "Since when did the hunters need a reason to kill us?"

"But what about the Pact?" Murasakibara cut in, unusually serious. "The werewolf community far surpasses the Hunters, even if you count the witches. By breaking the Pact, they only have to lose."

"If they could afford to be so blatant in their murder to the point of leaving their calling card, we can only assume they have an ace up their sleeve," Kise pointed out.

Midorima nodded, pushing up his glasses. "That's why we have to get all the facts. We need to know what we are dealing with. This might just be the work of another group of fanatics." His green eyes glanced at Akashi. "It's been known to happen before."

There was no reaction from the alpha but the way his yellow eyes seemed to get brighter.

"That's also why we need to strike hard and fast. By waiting for answers, we risk them preparing and growing stronger. We have to attack now while they don't expect," Aomine leaned forward, his features growing rougher and more lupine. "They killed one of our own. This calls for retribution."

Murasakibara looked at him from behind the purple curtain of his hair. "Revenge will not bring Mura-chin back, Mine-chin."

"You're right it won't. But it will sure as hell be sweet."

In the lull of the conversation, Akashi turned to look at him. "You have yet to speak, Tetsuya. Why don't you share with us your opinion?"

Glaring at him for dragging him into the conversation, Kuroko exhaled sharply, facing the enquiring faces turned to watch him.

"I agree with Midorima-san," he finally said. "This is probably the work of zealots. In that case, we must contact the Order of Orion so that we can find them and bring them to justice."

Kise narrowed his eyes. "Werewolf justice or human justice?"

He sent him a flat look. "Does it matter? Either way, Nijimura-san will be avenged and we won't have to worry about a group of rogue Hunters trying to kill us all."

"What do you think, Akashi?" Midorima asked, looking at the head of the table.

While Akashi deliberated, Kuroko looked at the window, displeasure growing in his gut as he watched the rain thicken. It would be difficult to drive down to the train station if it kept pouring like that.

(He firmly tuned out the way his Wolf whined at that.)

Finally, Akashi broke the silence.

"I agree with Shintarou and Tetsuya. As it stands, it would be risky - not to mention foolish - to rush into things. Hunters working outside the law already attacked Teiko once, it wouldn't be such a stretch to think they would do so again."

"So we wait?" Aomine asked, disgruntled.

The leader nodded. "We wait."

Kuroko released a breath he hadn't known he was holding, shoulders relaxing at the words. There would be no war.

Not yet.

The omega waited just long enough for Akashi to rise from his seat before he excused himself and began to walk to his room, intent on packing. He ignored the eyes drilling into his back.

There was a train ticket with his name on it waiting for him. If he left soon, he might arrive just in time to have lunch with Kagami.

_Kagami._

The thought of the redheaded human was enough to bring a smile to his face. Kagami probably didn't expect him until later this week, but Kuroko planned to leave as soon as possible. He imagined the look of surprise on his face when Kuroko showed up in Himura's place. They could go visit their prospective new apartment together and Kuroko would scout the area in search for his future wolf haunts while Kagami inspected the basketball courts they could spend their weekends in.

It would be perfect. Or as close to it as possible.

It didn't take long for his daydreams of the future to be interrupted.

"Won't Kuro-chin even stay long enough for breakfast?" Murasakibara asked, glaring heatedly at Kuroko's suitcase.

"I will eat something on the train," Kuroko said, sidestepping the pup's reaching hands.

Murasakibara had brought Nigou along with him, doubtless so that he could entice Kuroko to stay by forcing the pup onto him. Said pup had been placed on the plush rug, left to amuse himself in figuring out how to crawl. An impossible task to any normal child that had barely completed two months of age, but Nigou wasn't human. It unnerved Kuroko, watching the pup develop so fast because he knew the faster he grew, the sooner the Change would come upon him.

He wondered if Nigou would survive it.

(There was a reason werewolves didn't mate with humans, and the risk of discovery was the least of them)

The Wolf paced inside the cage. _He needs us_ , it whined. _Can't you see? We can teach him. We can make sure he grows strong. But we need to stay with Pack. With mates. They need us!_

He shook his head, purposefully rounding up the last of his possessions and trying to give them a semblance of order before packing them.

"Kuro-chin is too thin," Murasakibara eyed his body critically. "He needs food."

"I'm perfectly capable of feeding myself, Murasakibara-kun," he said while stuffing his things inside the bag and zipping it shut. Afterwards, he knelt in front of Nigou, ruffling his feather-soft hair and trying to commit his scent to memory. The baby let out a happy sound, trying to get on his lap and reach his chin so he could lick it, just like a wolf cub.

_I will miss you, pup._

He rose with a heavy heart. "I'm going to be fine, Murasakibara-kun," he repeated. "You don't need to worry."

"Don't lie to me."

The order in his voice was enough to freeze Kuroko where he stood. Rare were the times Murasakibara would use such a tone, always preferring to avoid conflict. It seems though, that Kuroko's resolute decision to leave had pushed him too far.

Unwillingly, it reminded him of the words they had shared last night.

_"Things are different. Everyone is different. The past year... hasn't been good at all."_

"You are starving yourself," it sounded almost like an accusation, the way Murasakibara said it. Not so different from Aomine's own voice when he pointed that out in the drive to Rakuzan.

It was also no less true.

Kuroko straightened his spine, holding his ground and leveling a steely gaze at the other omega.

"There's a difference between feeding myself, and feeding the wolf."

Murasakibara looked disturbed.

"I don't understand Kuro-chin. The wolf is you. You are the wolf."

He knew he should stay silent. He _knew_. But he _couldn't_ , not when Murasakibara was giving him  _that_ look, as if _Kuroko_ was being the unreasonable one, the silly one, as if he was a child that was throwing a tantrum, someone who didn't know any better.

When Kuroko spoke, his voice was as cold as the glint in his now-yellow eyes,  and he hoped that the words would hurt as much as his heart did.

"I don't expect Murasakibara-kun to understand why someone would have problems in being a bloodthirsty monster."

Murasakibara's face became shuttered almost at the same time a torrential wave of guilt washed over Kuroko. He opened his mouth to say something, apologize maybe, but didn't get the chance before the taller man shrugged, picked up Nigou from his place on the rug and left the room.

Kuroko watched them go with empty eyes.

 

* * *

 

The next one to try to make him stay was Kise.

Out of all his former packmates, he was always the one he dreaded the most. While Aomine would be aggressive and forceful to get the things he wanted, Kise would always use his looks and, even more devastatingly, his words to a greater effect.

It didn't help that Kise, along with Aomine, was also once one of his mates. Coupled with the fact he was the one who bit him...

A part of Kuroko feared Kise Ryouta more than he ever did Akashi.

He cornered him in the hallway.

"Don't do this."

The words were very near begging. His big, golden eyes looked at Kuroko beseechingly and a hand reached out to cup his face, thumb caressing his cheek. A soft, gentle touch, to remind Kuroko of the countless sweet times they shared such intimacies.

Kise was the picture of a repentant sinner, weighted down by past mistakes and hurts. His proud shoulders were slumped in defeat and he could barely make out a whimper coming from the back of the blond's throat as if the beast inside him was lending his own voice to Kise's pleading.

It roused his own Wolf. _Listen to them. They are sorry. They want to apologize. Make hurt go away. They can do it_

_Why won't you let them?_

For a second, Kuroko was tempted.

Then a voice that was not the Wolf but something bitter and weary that lurked in the darkness of Kuroko's psyche made itself known.

_This is your Maker. The werewolf who bit you. You swore you would never forgive him for it, but that didn't last long, did it? He convinced you to forgive him. He can convince you to stay._

_He can convince you of anything._

Slowly, Kuroko raised his hand until he covered Kise's own on his face. He met that golden gaze that stared at him with such hope. 

The Wolf was frantic inside him.

_Please._

"Goodbye, Ryouta."

The hand fell, and Kuroko walked on.

(The Wolf was crying inside him. Kuroko almost thought he was too.)

 

* * *

 

Things didn't get any better when he reached the downstairs.  

Akashi was waiting for him at the foot of the stairs, arms crossed and eyes closed, head tilted to the side like he was hearing something from far away.

Kuroko attempted to walk past him without initiating any contact, eyes fixed on the floor, but it was in vain. Akashi's voice froze him mid-step, though Kuroko didn't turn to face him.

"You know Tetsuya, when outsiders talk about Teiko, they always mention Kise's beauty, Murasakibara's strength, Aomine's skills, Midorima's intellect... They think of me, and name me the pinnacle of everything a alpha is supposed to be... They think us monsters of our own fields, several steps above the rabble. They think there is none better than us."

The gaze Akashi levels at him is piercing to the core.

"They are wrong."

Kuroko opened his mouth. It was dry. "If you have anything to say, Akashi-kun, then please go ahead."

"You are breaking their hearts."

Kuroko whirled around to stare at the alpha in shocked silence at the blunt words.

Akashi went on, unconcerned. "I always knew, of course, that you had it in you to be merciless. But I never thought you to be cruel. Congratulations Tetsuya. You have, as always, exceeded my expectations. Shuuzou was right as usual. You would have made a splendid pack leader."

Something inside Kuroko curled up and died at Akashi's words.

_You are breaking their hearts._

"It was... good... to see you again, Akashi-kun. I have no doubt you will take care of the pack in my absence."

Akashi gazed at him silently, before turning away. It was a relief not be the recipient of such a hard stare.

"Remember to lock the door when you leave."

Kuroko very nearly lunged at the door. He probably would have reached it if not for the hand that came from nowhere, suddenly seizing his wrist in an iron grip.

He didn't need to look behind him to know who it was.

_You are breaking their hearts._

"Aomine-san," Kuroko's voice was steady, not a hint of a growl to be found. "Release me, please."

The grip tightened, and this time Kuroko did growl.

He was _so_ tired.

" _Let go Daiki_."

With a snarl that was half rage and half despair, the alpha did, tearing his hand away as he backed off. He walked to the farthest wall from the door, head and hands coming to rest against the wood, giving his back to the rest of the lobby.

His voice was so quiet, Kuroko wouldn't have heard it if not for his superior hearing.

"You're a coward Tetsu. Do you hear me? You're a goddamned coward."

Kuroko thought about Ogiwara's empty eyes staring at him from the kitchen floor. Thought about the blood on Daiki's hands, on _his_ hands. Thought about waking up in the middle of the night, sweating and screaming, still in the grips of a nightmare.

He thought about running.

"... I know."

He had just crossed the threshold when a loud crash sounded behind him, as if someone had punched a hole in the wall. Almost immediately, a baby's wail rang inside the manor.

_You are breaking their hearts._

Kuroko didn't look back.

 

* * *

 

He didn't realise he was shaking until he got in the car and tried to jam the key inside the ignition.

His hands trembled as he stared at them uncomprehendingly. He fisted them, trying to still the tremors, only for the shaking to worsen.

His ears were ringing.

And the _Wolf_ -

 _Go back!_ it snarled, struggling against the bars and chains that held it down and away.  _Go back, go back, go back!_

His breathing quickened, but there suddenly was not enough air in his lungs and his heart was frantically beating against his chest and he couldn't breathe, oh sweet Moon, he _couldn't breathe_ -

_GO BACK!_

"Breathe. Come on, Kuroko. Follow my lead, breathe in and hold. One... two... three... four... Now, again with me, let it out, one... two... three... four..."

Ever so slowly, the agonizing pressure on his chest went away, and by the time the violent shaking wracking his body dissipated, Kuroko felt much calmer and in control.

Midorima was staring at him worriedly, drenched from head to toe as he knelt next to him in the driver's seat,  having opened the car's door to get at him.

Once the alpha as sure he had recovered from the episode, the sorry was immediately replaced by anger.

" _Look_ at you!" Midorima very near snarled. "Don't you see what you've done to yourself? Can't you see how you're destroying yourself? And for what?! Is it guilt for that human? Or is it out of _spite_ for us?!"

Kuroko wasn't given enough time to speak. Midorima barreled past him, clearly intent on spitting out the words he had been holding back since the two of them met again at that parking lot.

"Because if it is out of spite, Kuroko, you are better off living a happy, _healthy_ life away from us. But if it is the former, then stop this at once! No one, specially not a human, is worth this kind of pain!"

Kuroko saw the instant Midorima's words registered in his own mind by the way his eyes widened with horror behind his lenses. He held out his palms, attempting to placate him.

"Wait. No. That's not- I didn't mean-"

But Kuroko had already flung himself away. His breathing quickened, only this time it was rage that caused his pulse to rush, instead of fear.

"Get away. I will close the door on your hands, Midorima, don't think I won't."

The alpha retreated, still looking contrite, but Kuroko didn't give a damn anymore.

All he could think about was the way Kise had so easily wrapped his hand around Kagami's throat, how Aomine casually commented on murdering the human man as if simply remarking on the weather. The way Midorima had just spat out the word  _human_ in the same way one would say  _bug._

All he could think about was how bright, how  _red,_ Shige's blood had looked, against the white tiles of the kitchen.

_If I stay, I become like them. I can't be like them. I can't._

_I won't._

"Please, Kuroko..."

"Don't come into my life again, Midorima-san. That's the last warning I will give you."

He drove away.

_You are breaking their hearts._

_..._

  _... They broke mine first._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to research ways to help calm down someone having a panic attack but I don't know how successful I was. If anyone is more knowledgeable on this subject, please don't hesitate to correct me.


End file.
